Police find power in growth
By Morgan Streger
The Collegian
As Fresno State’s campus expands to encompass new development, Police Chief David Huerta says keeping experienced officers on staff is crucial to visibility of the department on campus.
The University Police department has 17 officers. With a small number of officers, it is vital for each to be a recognizable presence on campus, Huerta said.
Huerta, who was sworn in as police chief in August 2004, said one of his primary goals as chief is to “design a police response that makes people comfortable.” This is a challenge, Huerta said, because his department’s jurisdiction includes the campus itself as well as surrounding neighborhoods, all of which all must be patrolled by his compact force. He said he pushes his officers to give 110 percent at all times.
Huerta said his leadership style may have contributed to a lower turnover rate of police officers. The month before he became police chief, in August 2004, seven officers quit, but since he’s been in charge only one officer has left, Huerta said.
It can take up to six months for a new officer to learn where all the buildings on campus are and become familiar with their floor plans, not to mention the year or more it takes for an officer to be known by name, Huerta said. That’s why it’s important to keep “a high performing individual on this campus,” he said, “it is absolutely beneficial to the campus community.”
Huerta said his leadership philosophy includes “pushing responsibility downward” to the officers, while simultaneously “raising the bar regarding accountability.”
Another key reason to the current success of the university’s police department is the staff.
“We have a very committed group,” Huerta said, “who are here because they enjoy it and because they believe in this place.”
One member of this committed, group is Officer Tatevos Manucharyan. He joined the Fresno State University Police in 2004.
Manucharyan, who previously worked for the Fresno Police Department, said he chose to move to the University Police in 2004 because he “always heard good things about working on campus.”
He said he enjoys being able to work thoroughly on all aspects of a case at Fresno State, including any follow-up, which he wasn’t able do at his previous job.
University Police Chief David Huerta said that empowering officers, like Manucharyan, to do their jobs by funding training opportunities and delegating non-emergency tasks such as opening gates to non-sworn staff enables the department to “provide a professional environment so people who are here enjoy it.”
Manucharyan said there is high morale in the department. “We have a good partnership between officers,” he said.
A more empowering style of management isn’t the only change Manucharyan has noticed.
He said one of the changes implemented by Huerta has been an increase in the number of officers that patrol the campus during a shift.
Comment on this story in the News forum >>
|
