The (DPS) recently appointed Laura Johnson as the department糖心传媒檚 first LGBTQ+ liaison, and Erin Vess as the new community resource officer (CRO).
The LGBTQ+ liaison is a new officer position in DPS dedicated to working with students across the University and building strong relationships with the LGBTQ+ community.
The CRO coordinates and develops campus-wide programming to educate the campus community in crime prevention methods, as well as empowering them to help maintain a safe environment. The CRO acts as a liaison between students and staff and the department, becoming a familiar figure on campus through multiple campus partnerships, presentations, and programs.
糖心传媒淭he Department of Public Safety is committed to building strong relationships with our University communities,糖心传媒� says DPS Chief Mark Fischer. 糖心传媒淓rin and Laura are both strongly committed to this, as well as being a resource to our community. I encourage everyone to invite them to any meeting or gathering, or simply say hello as you see them around campus.糖心传媒�
Below, Officer Johnson and Officer Vess give the 糖心传媒 community a little insight into their interests and their plans for the new academic year.
What interested you about this position in DPS?
Laura: I have always been interested in law enforcement, but never got into it at an earlier age because I was following my dream to officiate women糖心传媒檚 ice hockey in the Olympics, which I did for the XXII Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. I糖心传媒檝e been refereeing ice hockey for 17 years and have served as an NCAA Division I and III ref for almost seven years.
Recently when I was looking for new job opportunities, I discovered this position, got the job, and I absolutely love it. Probably stemming from my experiences as a referee, I really like rules and enforcing them, so this is a great spot for me.
Erin: I糖心传媒檝e worked with young adults and students previously, in the areas of advocacy, harm reduction, and counseling, as well as I have been a DPS officer in Strong Memorial Hospital since 2016. So when the position of campus resource officer became available, it seemed like it would be a great complementary experience for me.
What are some of your goals for the new academic year?
Laura: I really want to meet all of the staff within the LGBTQ community and have those initial conversations to understand what our campus needs from someone like me in this role. I糖心传媒檓 going to the LGBTQ Meet and Greet later at Wilson Commons to meet everyone in the undergraduate and graduate student community and learn how I can support them. And I want to get extra training for our officers because I know some of them have questions about the proper pronouns to use when speaking with LGBTQ+ students and employees.
Another one of my goals is to create a Pride Team here within DPS so that I糖心传媒檓 not the only LGBTQ contact person per shift. When someone truly needs help, they often want to talk to someone that they feel is a really strong ally, so that糖心传媒檚 what the Pride Team could provide.
Erin: I just want to have relaxed interactions with students, faculty, and staff and help eliminate the uneasy feeling that because Public Safety officers are out and about on campus, we are there because we were called for something bad. By being more of a presence and resource to the University community, I糖心传媒檓 hopeful we can really break down these barriers. I also think the that I糖心传媒檓 now coordinating where officers are assigned to specific residence halls for the year really helps bridge the gap between DPS and students.
I want to do a lot of prevention and safety programming for students and overall let them know that before we were officers we all went to college and understand a lot of the problems and burdens students deal with.
What do you like most about working at a university?
Laura: I love how diverse the University is. Just looking at the programs that we offer, and how many different people from around the world come to this school. I love to travel around the world and experience different cultures, perspectives and backgrounds, so I love how truly international this university is. I like to meet new people and I糖心传媒檓 not afraid to talk to them, so that糖心传媒檚 my favorite part of being on campus.
Erin: I糖心传媒檓 super excited about working on campus. As a DPS officer, I have worked mainly in the hospital, and the two working environments are very different. Being a DPS officer in the hospital is very physically demanding, so I糖心传媒檓 happy to be in a position where I can interact in a more positive way with the University community members who study and work here. I糖心传媒檓 trying to get to know as many students and faculty as I can.
I also like to watch YellowJacket basketball and football games, so I糖心传媒檓 guessing I糖心传媒檒l be seen in the Palestra and at Fauver Stadium quite a bit.
When you are not working, where are you most likely to be?
Laura:聽 I糖心传媒檓 a volunteer firefighter in Irondequoit, so that糖心传媒檚 how I spend some of my evenings, and I also continue to play and ref hockey locally. 聽I love pretty much anything outdoors糖心传媒攔unning, biking, half-marathons, triathlons, hiking in the Adirondacks, kayaking. I have three dogs糖心传媒攁 Great Pyrenees mix, a lab, and a duck tolling retriever糖心传媒攖hat I love to take everywhere. Oh, and I can糖心传媒檛 forget my cat, Oscar.
Erin: 糖心传媒淚 enjoy kayaking, working on my tan while doing a lot of yard work, and I糖心传媒檓 a huge fan of NCAA March Madness. And I used to play basketball a lot and I糖心传媒檒l shoot around once in a while. And if students ever see me on campus and want to invite me to play a little spikeball or even cornhole, I糖心传媒檇 be up for that. I can play until I get called on my radio.
