Minutes of the Villanova University Police Oversight Committee
A meeting of the Villanova University Police Oversight Committee was held on Wednesday,
September 14, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. in the Davis Center conference room.
Members Present:
Rev. Rob Hagan, O.S.A., Associate Athletic Director, CHAIR
John Cosenza, Alumnus and Retired Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the criminal branch of
the FBI in Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania
Brighid Dwyer, PhD, Director, Program on Intergroup Relations
William Elmore, Management Student, Class of 2018
Timothy Horner, D Phil, Assistant Professor, Peace and Justice Education
Crystal Lucky, PhD, Associate Professor, English and Director of the Africana Studies Program
Ariel Thompson, Chemical Engineering Student, Class of 2018
Catherine Warrick, PhD, Associate Professor, Political Science
Guests Present:
Ken Valosky, Executive Vice President
Kinjal Dave, Liberal Arts and Sciences’ Student, Class of 2017
Kathryn Getek Soltis, PhD, Director, Center for Peace and Justice Education
John P. Edwards, PhD, Director, Center for Pastoral Ministry Education
Also Present (Ex Officio):
David Tedjeske, Director of Public Safety & Chief of Police
E. Michael Zubey, Jr., Associate General Counsel
The meeting began with introductions and a prayer by Fr. Rob Hagan, O.S.A.
Emails
The Committee agreed to create a general email address for the Oversight Committee to receive
concerns from the Villanova community. The email address is
[email protected]. It was also agreed that no individual Member will respond
to any email received from the general email account until the issues are discussed by the
Committee.
Public Safety Update
Mr. David Tedjeske, Director of Public Safety & Chief of Police, provided an update regarding
the hiring and training of police officers. To date, the University hired three police officers,
including himself, who will receive conflict training in October, 2016. A faculty member from
another institution will teach the conflict training for a total of 24 hours of training. Mr.
Tedjeske also stated that four additional police officers will be hired in November, 2016. He
also noted that the officers will receive diversity training in October or November, 2016 by
Major Ben Brooks of the State Police and that similar training was also provided in the Spring.
Mr. Tedjeske then briefly explained Anti-Defamation League (ADL) training. ADL training
teaches police officers about implicit biases and how those biases can impact an officer’s
interactions with others. Mr. Tedjeske ended his presentation by stating Public Safety is making
every effort to stay connected with this Villanova community and also to enhance their
interactions with the community during non-critical times.
Community Concerns/Recommendations/Suggestions
There were a number of community concerns offered to the Committee by Ms. Warrick
including: (1) uncertainty of the role of the Oversight Committee; (2) questions regarding new
Public Safety procedures; (3) recognizing Public Safety officers from Police officers; (4)
fostering communication between officers and the community to promote respect and
understanding; (5) proper reporting procedures for concerns and complaints; (6) uncertainty of
where students go to discuss issues; and (7) types of information the Oversight Committee will
receive.
Mr. Tedjeske addressed many of the above concerns and offered that Public Safety welcomes the
opportunity to conduct broader and inclusive forums with the Villanova community including
smaller group discussions and Q&A sessions with the Student Government Association and
Public Safety. Mr. Tedjeske noted the published information regarding the police transition is on
Public Safety’s website. In addition, FAQs have been developed and they, too, will also be
posted there. Regarding the concern of being able to recognize armed Police officers from nonsworn Public Safety officers, Mr. Tedjeske explained that their uniforms are different and
pictures illustrating the uniform differences will be posted on the Department of Public Safety’s
website. Mr. Tedjeske indicated he will utilize the ideas from the Committee in making
improvements in Public Safety and he also welcomes both positive and negative feedback
regarding all officers.
Executive Vice President Address
Mr. Ken Valosky, Executive Vice President, addressed with the Committee the University’s
transition to sworn Police officers. Mr. Valosky stated the change is in the early stages and there
needs to be thoughtful insight and communication between the Villanova community and the
sworn Police officers to promote understanding. Mr. Valosky informed the Committee that
complaints should be handled through Human Resources, General Counsel or Public Safety and
those departments will communicate the issues to the Police Oversight Committee. Public
Safety will also provide the Committee with a summary report of use of force situations, without
violating student privacy. In addition, the Committee will receive a briefing of complaints
against officers. Mr. Valosky noted there is an EthicsPoint hotline which is a confidential
reporting tool in which to report complaints and Public Safety will be made aware of them. Mr.
Valosky stated the Police Oversight Committee Chair will meet with the Audit and Risk
Committee of the Villanova University Board of Trustees and will provide it with an annual
report. Mr. Valosky concluded his presentation by stating that his door is always open for any
questions of the Committee.
Member Suggestions
Member suggestions are as follows: (1) maintain a calendar of events enabling students to be
aware of what events are happening; (2) have Public Safety welcome groups to its
meetings/events and speak to classes and answer students’ questions; (3) identify good Public
Safety ambassadors to initiate discussions with students and identify locations where students
can discuss issues; (4) televise Student Government Association meeting with Public Safety; and
(5) have the Committee review statistical and metrical measures to determine how the program is
working.
Fr. Rob Hagan, O.S.A. stated that we are all in this together and we have a job to do in
accordance with Augustinian values. The Committee needs to facilitate communication and
make recommendations. In addition, the Committee should receive information in real time and
then discuss it at the meetings. Regarding a Guest Policy, Fr. Rob Hagan, O.S.A. suggested that
anyone wishing to attend a Police Oversight Committee meeting should contact him.
Additionally, time can be reserved at the end of meetings for public comment.
The meeting was concluded by addressing changes in the upcoming meetings as follows:
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October 5, 2016 (previously 10/12/16)
November 9, 2016 (previously 11/16/16)
December 14, 2016
All meetings will be held in the Davis Center conference room at 9:00 a.m.