Chad Hochstatter attended Mendota Township High School, graduated from Illinois Valley Community College, served two deployments in Iraq as a Marine, and became a teacher and part-time police officer in the area. Now he’s back at his old school, making a difference in the community he calls home.

The Mendota Township High School Board of Education retained Chad Hochstatter as School Resource Officer for the 2026-27 school year.

“My mindset is that these kids are going to be the leaders of our town, our community, our state, our country and our world,” Hochstatter said. “I want to help make them the best humans that they could possibly be.”

Hochstatter has served as SRO at MTHS since 2019, reviving a role that had been dormant for years. He has contributed significantly to campus safety, security and student welfare.

“Having Officer Hochstatter is just a positive for our community and for our school environment,” MTHS Principal Joe Masini said. “The overarching asset that he is to the school is hard to describe.”

Hochstatter ensures that students have a safe and secure learning environment, looks out for students in need or distress, and acts as a conduit for outside intervention.

“We are a safer school and community because of him being in our building and building trust with our kids,” MTHS Superintendent Denise Aughenbaugh said. “His impact is immeasurable.”

Hochstatter came into the position with experience in both law enforcement and education.

“I was thinking that it was kind of the best of both worlds,” Hochstatter said. “I always felt like helping people is my true passion. I want to help people and this is my opportunity to do that.”

As the SRO, Hochstatter’s everyday duties include proactive prevention of violence or student harm, emergency response and coordination, traffic enforcement and digital safety for people and property.

“I hope that they all understand that I’m here and I care,” he said. “I care about their education. I care about them as individuals and want to help set them up in a good spot to be successful.”

Hochstatter’s duties extend far beyond his official role.

“He’ll pick up the kids, he’ll give them something to eat, he’ll give them a place to just vent for a while, he’s a member of our truancy team, the list goes on and on,” Masini said. “There’s a saying that goes, ‘They don’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care,’ and I think Officer Hochstatter personifies that probably better than anyone in this building.”

Hochstatter said he’s constantly trying to talk with students and build rapport with them, helping out whenever he can.

In February, Hochstatter helped a student facing a serious personal crisis.

“A student came to one of the social workers here with the situation, I got brought in, was told about it and handled the entire case from there,” he said. “I made sure I told the student beforehand that I just wanted them to be in a safe place.”

Hochstatter interviewed the student and counseled them on obtaining an Order of Protection. He coordinated with the State’s Attorney and provided personal funds for a phone to ensure the student had a lifeline.

“This is where it’s especially worth having him around. The kids trust him and they go to him,” Aughenbaugh said. “Some of these cases would not be reported. These kids would just suffer and not report it, but they trust Officer Hochstatter, so they do report it.”

Due to Hochstatter’s efforts, the student secured legal protection and maintained a safe connection to school support systems while the situation was resolved.

“I’m hoping that if people see or know an SRO, they can see that their job isn’t just sitting in a school and waiting for a bad guy to come in,” Hochstatter said. “It’s making those connections with kids and helping the kids that don’t want to come to school or are struggling in class or at home, and giving them a safe person to talk to.”

Hochstatter’s role as SRO at MTHS was renewed by the board of education for the 2026-27 school year, but he said he has no plans to leave anytime soon.

“My plan is to stick around at MTHS and be the SRO as long as they’ll have me out here and as long as the city of Mendota and the chief of police and deputy chief are all good with it.”