The University’s police force welcomed six new faces earlier this year.
Each of the officers, according to Sergeant Tim James, brought with them something to add to the University Police Department.
“The new officers bring youth,” James said. “They are only a few years older than the students so they really know how young people are today.”
The six new officers are Shellie Mack, Joe Salaica, Sean Beavers, Justin Penrose, Carl Reuther and Chad Mapus.
All of the new officers are patrol officers. This means they do routine patrolling of campus, traffic enforcement and criminal investigations.
Along with the previous jobs, the officers also help with some voluntary assignments for things like football games and Greek activities.
Mapus said that the department needed more officers because of a few retirements and also because the department was understaffed.
Sergeant James also said that the new addition to the Bowling Green police has taken some of the pressure off the other members of the department.
He added that the officers have been well trained in community oriented policing, which has become a huge part of the university policing techniques.
The other 18 police officers had been working many long shifts before the new officers were added.
Sergeant James said that there were a few qualifications, which included being a high school graduate and also having an associate degree or the equivalent of two years of college. The officers also had to be certified police officers through the state of Ohio.
“We also looked for officers with high moral character and good leadership qualities,” James said.
Eighteen people applied for the new officers positions. After the applications were collected the officers took a written examination.
If the officer received a passing grade on the exam they then went through a background investigation, psychological exam, and an interview.
The final interview was done by the Chief of Police.
The new officers said that there are many benefits in working at the University’s Police Department.
“Nothing stays the same here on campus,” Beavers said. “You never know what is going to happen.”
Salaica, another officer, said that he really enjoys working in Bowling Green because in a big city the officers can’t develop such a good relationship as they can in a small community.
All of the new officers said they are not only enjoying working in the Bowling Green community, but that they are also enjoying working with the other people in their department.
“Working with the other officers is like a family, and I think that is a real advantage,” Mack said.
The age and experience of the new officers has brought a lot to the force and has added to the incredible Bowling Green Police Department, according to James.
James wanted to remind students that the officers, new and old, are there for their service.
“Never be afraid to approach our officers, we are just like everyone else, we just have unusual jobs,” he said.