Public Safety Promotions and Awards

Back row (l-r): Director of Public Safety John Schmaltz, Assistant Chief Michael Kaselouskas, Lt. Chris Lyons, Investigator Timothy Metcalfe, Officer Timothy Humiston, and Officer Kerry McGill. Front row (l-r): Vice President Arosha Jayawickrema, Alexandra Messina '15, Officer Lisa Magnano, Dana Earle '15, and President Walter Harrison.

The Department of Public Safety held its second promotion and awards ceremony Thursday, as department personnel were recognized for their professionalism and dedication to the safety and well-being of the University community.

The ceremony also recognized the contributions of two students who took the initiative to report suspicious activity, and one staff member who went out of her way to help someone in distress.

University President Walter Harrison said that the University’s Public Safety officers do an outstanding job, but don’t always get the thanks and recognition they deserve. For example, officers who work the overnight shift and perform important duties at 2 or 3 in the morning may think that no one notices their hard work. “But we do,” Harrison said, “and we are very grateful.”

Vice President of Finance and Administration Arosha Jayawickrema said that the members of the Department of Public Safety “are passionate about what they do, they deeply care about the University community, and they always put the safety of others ahead of themselves. We really appreciate what you do day in and day out.”

Jayawickrema also paid tribute to the late Michael Czerepuszko, associate director of public safety and a 35-year member of the Public Safety Department, who passed away in October. Attendees at Thursday’s ceremony held a moment of silence in Czerepuszko’s honor.

During the ceremony, Director of Public Safety John Schmaltz presented the following promotions, awards, and recognitions:

– Michael Kaselouskas was promoted to Assistant Chief.

– Retired Hartford Police Sgt. Chris Lyons, a 20-year veteran of the Hartford Police Department, was introduced as the newest member of the Public Safety Department, where he will hold the rank of lieutenant.

– Timothy Metcalfe was promoted to Investigator.

– Distinguished Service Citations were presented to Officers Timothy Humiston and Lisa Magnano, who responded to a situation in which an intruder made his way into Hawk Hall in the early morning of Nov. 19, and said that he was going to shoot people. The suspect, a non-student who was high on LSD, did not actually have a gun. But Humiston and Magnano did not know that when they approached the suspect unarmed, wrestled him to the ground, and took him into custody. Only seven minutes passed between the initial call to Public Safety and Humiston and Magnano removing the suspect from the building in handcuffs, Schmaltz said.

– A Distinguished Service Citation also was presented to Officer Manuel Acosta, who was on duty at the Handel Performing Arts Center on Westbourne Parkway when he saw a man in the parking lot beating up a woman, who was his common law wife. Acosta subdued the man, took him into custody, and turned him over to Hartford Police.

– A Director’s Letter of Commendation was presented to Officer Kerry McGill for his work in investigating a car break-in on the University’s Asylum Avenue Campus. McGill went above and beyond his duties in canvassing the campus and surrounding neighborhood, found an ID belonging to the suspect, and turned it over to Hartford Police, who were then able to make an arrest in the case, Schmaltz said.

– A Director’s Letter of Appreciation was presented to students Dana Earle ’15 and Alexandra Messina ’15, who took the initiative to contact Public Safety to report seeing an individual acting suspiciously in the vicinity of the Village Apartments. It turned out that the man had previously been arrested for exposing himself, and Earle’s and Messina’s actions resulted in the removal of a potentially threatening presence on campus, Schmaltz said. “Public Safety is only as effective as the community it serves. This is the true essence of community policing,” Schmaltz said.

– A Director’s Letter of Appreciation also was presented to Ashley Malcolm, coordinator for the Hartt Theatre Division. Malcolm went out of her way to help a student who was having a severe nosebleed. The severity of the nosebleed was causing the student intense anxiety. Malcolm calmed her down, comforted her, and tended to her nosebleed until Public Safety arrived on the scene. “It’s nice to see community members stepping up and being good citizens,” Schmaltz said.