About 150 officers, personnel and family members of the Houston Independent School District Police Department gathered at Peck Elementary School on Friday to honor outstanding employees during their 18th Annual Awards Luncheon. The ceremony celebrates the achievements, outstanding customer service and contributions of the department during the academic school year.
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HISD Chief of Police Robert Mock spoke during the ceremony about the new and exciting changes that took place throughout the 2014-2015 school year and praised his officers on another positive year of providing safety and security for the students, staff, faculty, and visitors to the district.
“I appreciate your support, confidence, dedication and your sacrifice,” said Mock. “We are going to do the best we can to support you and we wouldn’t be here if you didn’t believe in us doing the right thing.”
As the only accredited public school district police department in the nation (CALEA), HISD PD continues to move forward in solidifying its status as a “standalone” police department by implementing new initiatives. In February, the department began testing body cameras to provide an additional method in boosting student and campus safety. After months of testing and trials, HISD PD has selected a vendor and ordered more than 200 cameras to be in use for officers during the 2015-2016 school year.
During the event, Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson delivered the keynote address, thanking officers for caring about the community and keeping the students and people safe.
“I want you all to know right off the bat that the District Attorney’s office considers [HISD PD] a valuable partner,” said Anderson. “The way you interact and deal with students, you can shape their view of police officers for the rest of their lives and I believe you all are already doing that every single day, and I thank you for that.”
This year’s recipients include:
- Crossing Guard of the Year: Keshuan Evans
- Support Bureau Employee of the Year: Dianet Palafox
- Rookie of the Year: Officer James Hayes
- Operations Bureau Campus/Patrol Employee of the Year: Officer Rick Evans
- Life Saving Award: Mario Gonzales
- Unit Citation of the Year: Dayshift Patrol Division
- Supervisor of the Year: Sgt. Artina Walker