Profile of the month: Public safety officer ‘dedicated’

“There is not a more dedicated, supportive and admirable student.”

These words from Cherilyn Nederhiser, MHCC lead Public Safety Officer, describe a student who works to keep the school safe while pursuing his education.

Nathan Long was a Public Safety volunteer since Winter Term 2012, on top of being a full-time student. In the most recent f

all term, he became a full-fledged Public Safety officer.

“I’ve been really honored to be asked to do it,” he said.

As a volunteer for Public Safety, Long’s duty was to patrol the campus and keep an eye out for anything strange. He said the work was pretty fun — most of the time. He got a lot of good exercise during his shifts and met a lot of new people. He also found it rewarding to help make sure the campus was safe.

Long said that he is rarely afraid to lay down the law.

“There were instances where I had to tell people that they couldn’t smoke, and some would get upset. I have to let them know that I don’t make the rules, I just enforce them,” he said. He made sure to choose his words carefully, so he didn’t upset anyone.

Nederhiser praised Long’s diplomatic skills. “I have observed Nathan’s skill in handling some tense and sometimes volatile situations involving some overwrought students with calm respect, safety and care,” she said.

Long says that the big difference with his new position as an officer is that he is the one responding to calls, rather than just

tipping off other officers of an incident.

Nederhiser commended Long’s diplomatic skills saying that, “I have observed Nathan’s skill in handling some tense and sometimes volatile situations involving some overwrought students with calm respect, safety and care.”

Long says that the big difference with his new position as an officer is that he is the one responding to calls, rather than just tipping off other officers.

Despite his admiration for the new position, there are some things he misses about being a volunteer; “Being a volunteer was more flexible. I was able to do more hours because I wasn’t getting paid.” He also preferred working at the main campus as opposed the at the Maywood campus where he is currently stationed.

During his time as an officer, Long has also gotten to train other volunteers. “Eventually I became the go-to guy to show them around campus.”

Long says that he has yet to respond to any emergencies or major situations. “It seems like when I was on duty, nothing was happening. But when I was off duty, everything was going wrong.”

He prefers a more quiet shift because it means everything is going smoothly; “But in some ways it can get a little boring,” he said.

His job as an officer doesn’t cut into school too much, he said. “Sometimes I have to leave class a little early. Luckily, it hasn’t been too hard.”

He also spoke highly of working for Public Safety. “It’s great experience. You’ll be able to get to know awesome people and also learn the laws and what it takes to become an officer.” He said it’s also great on a resumé.

Difficulties with Public Safety officers that may be unknown to students were elaborated by Long. “We are under a lot of scrutiny. Often in situations we have to think of the solution right then and there. We have to be very careful with our actions. We have to make sure we provide the necessary care to the situation. And we have to respond to all sorts of calls so the officers are pretty busy.” He said that their calls can be anything from irate students to jumping a dead car battery. (Quotation marks? -rg)

Another passion of Long’s is music. He plays many instruments, including the tuba, trumpet and bass guitar. “Bass guitar is my favorite,” he said. In fact, he was previously pursuing a degree in music.

He is currently seeking a degree in criminal justice. The decision to pursue this field was influenced by his work with Public Safety, he said. “It’s a great profession that I was made to do.”

Long says that he should only have one more term to complete his Associate of Arts Degree and hopes to transfer over to Portland State University, in order to further pursue criminal justice.

This experience has truly impacted him. “It made me appreciate security personnel and police personnel a lot more. Now I see what they go through. They often have a bad rap. It just opened my eyes up to my possible future.”