DPS News

The Department of Public Safety honored 10 of its employees, along with two members of the Students for Community Safety Program and one Parole Officer with the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision at the seventh annual DPS Awards Ceremony, held at 5:00 p.m. at Drumlins Country Club on Thursday, May 1, 2014. The awards honored the exceptional achievements of DPS staff members throughout the past year. Their outstanding accomplishments continue to contribute to the safety and security of the Syracuse University community.

The award recipients were:

Saketh Binkam, a Residential Security Aid for the Students for Community Safety Program, was presented a Community Member Recognition Award for his quick action and persistence in reporting a non-complaint party attempting to enter Watson Hall that resulted in the arrest of a suspended student for harassment and trespass.

James Slater of the Steam Station was recognized for his excellent communication skills, his consistent dependability and positive attitude towards working with the DPS on any issues after-hours and for his aid on September 1, 2013, when a lightning strike incident injured two DPS officers on Syracuse University’s South Campus. Additionally, Sergeant Timothy Salanger, Patrol Senior Specialist Kim Isaac, Officer George Wazen, ECC Coordinator James Keefe, and ECC Specialist Kelly Pergrem were recognized with certificates of appreciation for their individual and collective actions that evening in response to the incident.

Parole Officer John Snyder of the New York State Department of Corrections was recognized for his quick and selfless action on February 15, 2014, when he joined in a foot pursuit with DPS officers and helped apprehend two suspects in a series of burglaries in campus academic buildings.

Students Jing Zhu, Rucha Avinash Somani, and Yu Sun were presented with Community Member Recognition Awards for their help in building a mobile Android application for the Department, which hosts social feeds, releases, and a map of recent incidents all on one platform.

Detective Cleveland McCurty, Jr. received the Grant Williams Excellence in Service Award and the Vice President’s Award for Excellence in Overall Performance for his consistent work ethic, his relationship-building with community organizations and University community members, his tireless work on DPS Crime Prevention initiatives, and his willingness to work whenever and wherever requested. The Vice Presidents’ Award is presented to an officer who performs a series of acts of exceptional achievement to the department and the University.  The Grant Williams Award commemorates the dedication and commitment to service exemplified by the late Major Williams in his four decades of service to the Department of Public Safety and to the University.

Undergraduate student Aminah Foxworth was awarded the Grant Williams Memorial Scholarship for her hard work and dedication to the Students for Community Safety Program as a Student Supervisor. Aminah sometimes works upwards of 40 hours per week filling in when necessary for shift coverage, in addition to performing well as a full-time student.

Emergency Communications Center (ECC) Coordinator Linda Koser-Martin received the Excellence in Law Enforcement Award for her help investigating numerous crimes across the campus area by searching through and cataloguing security camera footage as evidence.

Public Safety Residential Receptionist Susan Pope-Millet received the Outstanding Students for Community Safety Employee Award for her competence and concern at her posts in residence halls across campus. Susan knows and treats the residents and building staff with respect and her work performance is above and beyond expectations.

Officer Jeffrey Mertell was presented the Outstanding Peace Officer Award for his reliability and his willingness to help on a variety of shifts, hours, and events when the need arose. Officer Mertell took it upon himself to help resolve dangerous conditions in the Campus West area when construction made traffic and parking conditions unsafe.

The Outstanding Communications Officer Award was presented to ECC Coordinator Shannon Day and ECC Manager James Santoferrara – Day for her consistent poise under pressure, professionalism, and quick thinking on the job, and James for his adept management of the ECC’s technological infrastructure improvements.

Training Coordinator Daniel Lebron was presented with the Spirit of Justice Award for his work over the years with Toys for Tots and his efforts at providing multi-lingual safety information and presentations for Spanish-speaking and other international students.

The Distinguished Performance Award was presented to three members of the department for their continuing commitment to going above and beyond their required duties. Detective Robert Bleyle, Sergeant James McLellan, and Community Services Officer Nicholas Lostumbo were presented with this award – Bleyle for his work on documenting standards and procedures for Accreditation, McLellan for his flexibility and willingness to fill in on a variety of shifts and a number of capacities, and Lostumbo for his actions on January 19, 2014, when he aided in the arrest of a suspicious person who had previous trespass warnings to stay off University property.
Sergeant Timothy Salanger, Detective Michael Toia, ECC Specialist Shannon Donohue, and Officer Gregory Scheurer were presented with the Meritorious Service award for their individual and collective actions to track, identify, pursue, apprehend, and arrest two burglary suspects in a foot chase on February 15, 2014.

Officer Michael Patsos was presented with the Meritorious Service Award for his actions as one of the first responders to the lightning strike incident on September 1, 2013, as well as his overall efforts with planning events and encouraging department members to participate in various Health and Wellness initiatives.

Senior Detective Ed Weber received the Chief’s Heroism Award for his actions on the night of September 1, 2013, when the patrol car he was riding in with Patrol Senior Specialist Stanley Prue was struck by lightning. Weber called for emergency medical services and worked to minimize PSS Prue’s injuries while he waited in the storm for help to arrive.

Each award recipient significantly impacted the collective efforts of the Department of Public Safety, and it is due to their efforts that the reputation of DPS as a service provider and professional law enforcement agency has continued to flourish.

Officers Edward Babcock and Joseph Shanley were honored last weekend with awards from the Syracuse University Orange Chapter of the National Residence Hall Honorary.

Both awards were decided by a nomination process from students and staff members, like RA’s, main desk assistants, and other Residence Life personnel. Nomination and voting took over a month.

Officer Babcock received the Spotlight of the Year award (pictured), described as an award recognizing an outstanding person who works for support services like campus safety, food services, or Students for Community Safety. The award recipient also “interacts with an impacts students with his or her outstanding accomplishments.”

The Bronze Pin Award is a national award, given to only 8 recipients in our region. The pin is awarded to individuals who have provided leadership and direction to campus organizaitons, and is given with the approval of both the Residence Hall Association and the National Residence Hall Honorary.

Congratulations to Officers Babcock and Shanley!

Department of Public Safety Employees Commander Andrew Mrozienski and Training Coordinator Daniel Lebron have been inducted into the Alpha Sigma Chapter of the Phi Beta Delta International Honor Society.

In an induction ceremony at Hendricks Chapel on Friday, March 21, 2014, Chapter Coordinator and Director of the Slutzker Center for International Services, presented Mrozienski and Lebron with their induction certificates and medals.

Commander Mrozienski serves as the Service Director for the Slutzker Center, and Coordinator Lebron is a Service Agent for the Center. Both are points of contact for any safety-related needs or concerns, and Coordinator Lebron has also been provided the Center assistance with translating and interpreting safety materials for Spanish-speaking students.

Phi Beta Delta is the nation’s first honor society dedicated to recognizing individuals who have demonstrated academic excellence, good character, and a commitment to international education and exchange.   Categories of membership include:  international students and scholars who have come to the U.S. for study or research; United States citizens or permanent residents who have studied abroad; distinguished international and domestic faculty and staff and individuals that demonstrate international leadership on the Syracuse University campus.

Congratulations Commander Mrozeinski and Coordinator Lebron!

Donna Adams
Associate Director, Public Safety and Administrative & Technical Services Division
As an Associate Director, Donna’s responsibilities extend far and wide within the organization. Donna heads the administrative staff members who work in the Department’s main offices. This includes directing payroll, billing, and budget support functions, and occasionally also involves managing operations for the Chief when he is unavailable. Donna makes HR recommendations for the organization, coordinating an annual performance review process and oversees Administrative Manager area and Clery Compliance.

She oversees the Operations Support Commander (and the property and evidence, records and reports functions under the Commander), the Emergency Communications Center, the quartermaster, and courier services. Donna also supervises the Technical Services Manager, who coordinates all major IT equipment and maintenance for our camera systems, patrol car computing systems, and software upkeep. Donna is a member of the DPS Executive Leadership Team.

Donna was born in Michigan, and moved to Liverpool, NY as a young child. She attended SUNY-Albany, where she studied criminal justice, sociology, and theatre. She received a Master’s degree from the School of Information Studies in 2003.  She has worked for the Department of Public Safety for 20 years, and in many capacities, including a dispatcher, records manager, payroll system administrator, and even a server administrator on Novell Netware. She shifted to her current role in 2006, and now leads 20 DPS positions.

Donna says that she loves how her job affords her variety – every day is different. She enjoys working with a group of professionals and also interacting with students.

Outside of work, Donna loves to cook gourmet meals, and she is currently taking classes in creative nonfiction writing, at the College of Arts and Sciences.