Biola University Honors Its Officers, Staff and Others for Improving Campus Public Safety
Twelve campus public safety department employees receive awards for their work in 2017.
Due to the warm Southern California weather, Santa Claus drove to the Biola University Campus Safety awards ceremony on a campus patrol vehicle. Rudolph and the rest of the reindeer took the night off.
‘Tis the season for campus public safety parties, and La Mirada, Calif.-based Biola University hosted its holiday bash on Dec. 1.
Not only did department employees and their families enjoy a tasty meal and a surprise visit from Santa, many officers and staff members were recognized for their outstanding work throughout the year. Biola Campus Safety Chief John Ojeisekhoba handed out awards for distinguished service and meritorious service, as well as awards of appreciation.
The distinguished service award was presented to employees who consistently distinguished themselves with exceptional service. The meritorious service award was presented to staff member who went above and beyond during a specific incident that was of critical importance to the department. The award of appreciation was presented to organizations and individuals who provided significant support to the department.
Biola’s information technology department won an award of appreciation for researching and proposing a public address system and implementing a panic alarm system at high risk locations on campus. The best part of this is that this system came at almost no cost to the university. Additionally, Ojeisekhoba praised the level of support the IT department provides campus safety.
Another winner of the award of appreciation was the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department La Mirada Detective Team.
“From the most complicated case to minor cases these detectives truly understand the impact of being victimized,” said Ojeisekhoba. “Within the last five years, this group of detectives has worked with us to resolve many, many cases and has brought closure to many student victims.”
The third award of appreciation went to Lieutenant Kevin Beggs who has been the head of the La Mirada Sheriff’s Station for the past four years.
“From open lines of communication, which includes frequent information sharing or warning us about situations that could impact our campus, drafting and implementing new agreements (including a radio frequency sharing agreement), making recommendations on cost-effective equipment for our officers, to providing series of specialized training to our personnel, all these years Lieutenant Beggs has had our interests at heart,” said Ojeisekhoba.
The employees who received the distinguished service award included:
- Deputy Chief Randy Richardson
- Admin Operations Manager Justin Shelby
- Officer Erik Alair
- Gate Attendent Katlyn Baeza
- Office Assistant Mekdes Ekey
- Cadet Toni Rosales
- Dispatcher David Geis
- Community Service Cadet William Bucher
Winners of the merit award included
- Sergeant Jose Alvarez
- Officer Ben Marquedant
- Officer Erik Alair
- Officer Pedro Vasquez
Check out the photo gallery and Chief Ojeisekhoba’s comments on why they won their awards.
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