UNG Public Safety earns state certification

The University of North Georgia Department of Public Safety received state certification from the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, making it one of six within the University System of Georgia and among 142 in Georgia to be so designated.

“This is an important day for the UNG Department of Public Safety,” Chuck Groover, coordinator for the Georgia Law Enforcement certification program, said. “There’s a lot of work that goes into becoming state certified. It’s not something we just hand out like candy. If you don’t earn it, you don’t get it. If you don’t keep it, then we take it away from you. It’s a big deal.”

“This is a massive accomplishment. I want you to know how incredibly proud I am of every single one of you,” UNG President Michael Shannon said. “Thank you for what you do for our students. You create an environment where we can bring other people’s kids to our campuses, and they can live and learn. Through that, their legacies are changed. Their lives are changed forever, and you create the environment for that.”

The program is totally voluntary and is something a department chooses to do because it wants to be the best it can be, Groover said.

“You want to meet best practices not only for your officers and employees, but also for the citizens and students you serve,” Groover said. “It’s my honor to be here today to recognize this department and its accomplishments.”

Certification acknowledges the implementation of policies and procedures that are deemed conceptually sound and operationally effective. In addition, the certification process includes an on-site assessment and a review by a state certification committee and a joint review committee.

The process took two years to complete, Greg Williams, UNG director of Public Safety and Chief of Police, said.

Three members of the DPS staff played key roles in the process, including state certification managers Brianna Klinge, Trent McGuffey and Rusty Myers.

“I’m very proud of the energy and commitment that’s been given to this project,” Williams said.

In addition to the state certification, several officers were recognized for their achievements:

Annual awards

• New Communications Officer of the Year — Eric Mason and Tiffanie Martin
• Communications Officer of the Year — Anita Bookmiller
• New Officer of the Year — Freddy Yarbrough
• Officer of the Year — Jason Owens

Life-Saving Award

• Cody Buffington
• Alex McCollum
• Brody Clements
• Madison Comer

Promotions

• Kathryn Smith — Major
• Thomas Foster — Senior Police Officer
• Rusty Myers — Senior Police Officer
• Chris Sosebee — Senior Police Officer
• Jason Owens — Police Sergeant
• K9 Rex — Police Sergeant

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