September 20
By Anthony Cammalleri | September 20, 2022 | Lynn Item
LYNN — North Shore Community College will implement campus police reform initiatives focused on community engagement this fall.
Under a new policing model, NSCC aims to build trust, community, and comfort between campus police and their students.
Campus Police Chief David Cook restructured the college’s police department to create a security division, which will implement a new Community Engagement Service Model.
In a written statement, Cook said by eliminating fixed posts from standard campus policing procedures, he can facilitate socialization and partnership between students and police.
“Our objective is to strengthen the department’s partnerships among students, faculty, and staff by furthering our mission of transparency, trust, community service, and academic success,” Cook said. “We believe that it is necessary for the college community, both students and staff, to feel comfortable with the campus police who are here to protect and assist them. To break down barriers, the community engagement model will remove officers from fixed posts and instead have them regularly circulate so that they can better get to know folks on campus and be seen as approachable.”
Cook said that he wants to work to build interpersonal relationships between his department’s officers and the community of students they serve.
“We want to improve communication, understanding, and utilization of police services and policies through collaboration with other departments and the development of trust and relationships. We’d like our officers to be known by their names and for being resources to help,” he said.
The new policing model will be led by the school’s new community resource officer, Lt. Kevin Marshall, who left his nearly 20-year career at the Nantucket Police Department to serve the Lynn campus. Marshall will be responsible for assisting Cook with the overall safety and protection of students, employees, and visitors of the college.
Marshall, who, four years ago, received a citation from the state for his leadership in suicide prevention, will handle all police functions related to campus security such as crime prevention and investigation, security services, and daily departmental operations at the Lynn campus. He will also oversee the creation and implementation of community engagement programs at the school.
“I look forward to engaging with the NSCC community as it is important for our force to be seen as providing service to the community, not just enforcement,” Marshall said. “We want our students to have a successful academic year and, by building relationships with them, we can contribute to that.”
Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at anthony@itemlive.com