For the second year in a row, Oshkosh North has a new school resource officer (SRO). Matt Steinart of the Oshkosh Police Department started his first assignment on August 7, 2023.
For some students, he may look vaguely familiar, as Steinart attended training last year with Officer Tracey Grubofski, who stepped in after Officer Chee Vang resigned to resume his work as a detective.
“I tried training for like two weeks at the end of last school year here at North with Officer Tracy so I spent some time doing that. But yes, this is my first full-time job working in a school.”
For seniors, Steinart is the fourth school resource officer in the building following Officer Ryan Boerner, Vang, and Tracy.
The reason Steinart wants to be a S.R.O. is because he wants to be better than the officer he had when he was a kid in high school.
“Unfortunately when I was in high school I had a S.R.O. that I didn’t really like so I knew that this was a role in the police that I wanted to do because of the bad interactions with him.”
Officer Steinart applied for this job because he greatly enjoys interacting with people and trying to make a difference.
“I’ve always been kind of a people person so I like talking to people and interacting even if it’s unfortunately a bad situation. I still hopefully try to make it better.”
It turns out that Oshkosh North has made a great first impression on him.
“So far I like it, I like the people, and the kids so far have been good. It’s only been a little over a week”
However, when Steinart is not in school he enjoys spending time with his family, who he lives with in Oshkosh. He has a wife, a stepdaughter (22), and a son (10), grandson (2).
He likes playing sports and watching movies too.
“My son is in sports so a lot of it is just practices or games. Otherwise, I like to play sports, I like to go to movies. But usually, my time is just spent with family or friends.”
Steinarts favorite movie is called “Brain Fart.” It’s about funny thoughts an artist may have while filming a music video. The movie includes the artists, 50 Cent, Backstreet Boys, and more.
Advice from Steinart would be. “Do well in school because if you don’t you’re going to regret it later. But also find your passion so find what you truly love to do and truly like to do and spend time doing that and being the best at it you can.”
