The 2023 DPS award recipients were recognized during a ceremony on April 30, 2024. Members of the awards committee included Brandy Cunningham (chair), Oleta Davis, Sara Everson, Louis Johnson and Elizabeth Morse, with support from Brooke Lents and Maggie Sprecher.
Throughout 2023, Brody Norton worked as a Mentor for the !SU Community Safety Ambassador (CSA) program. He was instrumental in developing students into leaders and holding them accountable to the mission of the !SU Police Department. In September 2023, Brody was entrusted with an internship with the !SU Police Department to serve as an outreach intern. In this role, he built quality relationships with our !SU partners and organizations. He gained the trust and respect of our partners at Student Wellness through the Cyclone Support campaign and helped to facilitate and lead initiatives in peer mentoring and student engagement in the Cyclone support campaign. He is often praised by !SU faculty and staff for his dedication, input, and hard work in developing content and engagement. His nominator shared, "[Brody] has been an invaluable asset to the outreach team in presenting outreach to incoming students, international students, and minority students. He has embodied the spirit of service to the community."
Nominated by Lieutenant David Peterson
Throughout 2023, Officer Natasha Greene represented the !SU Police Department in a professional and engaging manner. As the outreach and engagement inclusion officer, she built quality and trusting relationships with our !SU partners and organizations. She gained the trust and respect of our partners at Student Wellness through the Cyclone Support campaign and was entrusted to help facilitate and lead initiatives in peer mentoring and student engagement. She has been instrumental in advocacy for the sexual assault campaign at !SU and has worked to educate, empower, recover, and advocate for all survivors. Her continued efforts with the Green Dot Initiative have had profound rewards for anyone who is involved in the program. She was also instrumental in our department's participation with NCORE, the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity at !SU and is often called upon to help facilitate, guide and mentor in the NCORE program. Greene has gained the respect of !SU leadership at the highest level of the university. She is often praised by !SU faculty and staff for her thoughts, ideas, and initiatives. Her nominator shared, "[Natasha] has been an invaluable asset to the Police outreach team and has touched the lives of thousands of students and family members in her outreach efforts. Her partnerships have a lasting impact on !SU and continue to help guide our partnership in serving our !SU community."
Nominated by Lieutenant David Peterson
Over the past year, Shannon Knudsen has been instrumental in advocating for and receiving an increase for Story County Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs). She has not only assisted in the, acquisition but has headed up the implementation and training of SANEs on the new colposcope and its interface with the EPIC system at Mary Greeley Medical Center. Knudsen was also instrumental in developing and bringing to Ames the Inaugural AG Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) Conference in 2023, which included mock exams being conducted at Thielen Student Health Center. Knudsen continues to be on call for all SANEs 24/7 and is trained on best practices for SANEs locally, state-wide and nationally. Additionally, her work was featured in a newspaper article last year advocating on behalf of sexual assault victims and the continued funding of SART kits by the Iowa Attorney General's Office. The Story County SART (Sexual Assault Response Team) mission is to serve sexual assault victims by coordinating an immediate, highquality, multi-disciplinary, victim center response which may include health care, law enforcement, advocacy, and judicial systems and Knudsen's efforts exemplify this mission.
Nominated by Mary Howell Sirna
In October 2023, CSA Shelby Mielke responded to a medical emergency in progress and stopped to check on the safety and welfare of an individual passed out near the roadway. She got him out of the roadway, restored proper breathing function and secured his airway. Mielke remained calm throughout the incident and communicatede ffectively to get more resourceso n the scene. Her quick and professionalr esponse went beyond the expectation of the CSA role. She used great judgement to assess the situation and begin a life saving process and she remainedc alm, was professional,c oncise and empathetici n her treatmentA. s her nominator shared, "It is because of her professionalism, courage, great communication skills and high standard of herself that I nominate Shelby Mielke for the Excellent Service Commendation."
Nominated by Lieutenant David Peterson
Dispatcher Tammy Barker received a 911 call from a concerned party regarding a suicidal subject in early 2023. Barker's efforts were exemplary in processing the initial welfare check call, sending responding units, and working together with her partner in the communication center to gather additional information. She worked to maintain fluid information exchange for officer response and ultimately collaborated with several Emergency Communication Centers for additional resources all with the aim of locating and rescuing the individual. Her nominator praised, "Tammy's actions that evening had a significant impact in locating the subject, and it exhibited an excellent standard of performance in her public safety dispatching duties for this incident."
Nominated by Dispatch Supervisor Louis Johnson
In March 2023 while on patrol, Officer Karime Massaro observed an ambulance with emergency lights on parked on the roadway near the intersection of Stange and 13th Street. When Massaro made contact with the ambulance crew, she observed both EMTs in the rear of the ambulance rendering live-saving CPR to an individual being transported to the hospital. Massaro quickly assessed the situation and determined with the medics that in order to give the best chance of survival for the victim and allow the medics to continue giving life-saving aid, she would drive the ambulance to the Mary Greeley Medical Center Emergency Room.
"Massaro' s actions in the early morning hours of that day were nothing short of commendable. Her service, dedication, and commitment to her community and the lives of its members in the face of uncertain circumstances is a reflection of herself and the highest traditions of this department," shares her nominator.
Nominated by Lieutenant Andrew Chapman
As police officers and staff members in the Department of Public Safety, we ask our community members to work with us in creating safer communities by looking out for each other, addressing safety concerns proactively, and working collaboratively to build a community that includes and supports everyone. While these sound like nice community guidelines, we know the reality is much more challenging and complex.
Both of these recipients understand the complexity of the challenges facing our communities. Even knowing the realities of this work, they actively eliminate barriers, increase access, and improve outcomes at the individual, community, and institutional levels. Their humble and kind approach to our collective work invites collaboration, creativity, and a multidisciplinary approach. In an institution known for silos, territorialism, and competition, these recipients exhibited remarkable perseverance and creativity in creating a multidisciplinary team to develop Cyclone Support. They prioritized students' access to resources and support over individual or unit-specific recognition.
Their willingness to navigate tumultuous climates and their creative problem-solving have led to multiple campus-wide initiatives that make our students, faculty, and staff safer both on and off campus. Their dedication to doing the hard work means they keep working alongside us and other collaborators across campus to make !SU as healthy and safe as possible. Even when it is politically advantageous to distance themselves or projects from our unit, they never waiver in their collaboration, wisdom-sharing, or support for our shared goals. Brian and Erin have helped our team better understand potential ways to approach the hard stuff that we all care deeply about addressing within our communities: suicide prevention, mental health resources and destigmatization, supporting folks in all stages of substance use and recovery, preventing and responding to power-based personal violence, addressing basic needs gaps and increasing access, addressing health inequities and barriers to belonging, and so much more. They and their teams have served as mentors, teachers, co-collaborators, and peers as we work to tackle these topics on campus.
Brian Vanderheyden and Erin Baldwin's unwavering dedication to health equity exemplifies true leadership and commitment to the health and safety of our community as a whole as well as every individual on campus. As one supporter shared to them, "The values and principles you help guide will have an incredible impact on generations of students now and in the future. Your efforts will be life-changing for students who are privileged to use this new program. Thank you so much for your passion and commitment to supporting and improving the !SU experience."
Nominated by Michael Newton, Associate Vice President and Chief of Police
