Lt. Steve Mahon’s title, officer in charge, isn’t officially police chief but he still has all the responsibilities of one.

“My number one responsibility is the safety of everyone on the university. In the event an incident occurs on campus, I become the Incident Commander,” said Mahon. “At that time I make all the tactical decisions… anything safety-wise around campus is coming out of this office.”

Brittany Gilbert, a senior communications major, said “he’s doing a great job keeping the students informed and aware of our surroundings.”

Mahon’s made multiple changes and upgrades since becoming the O.I.C.

All patrol cars now possess first aid kits, GPS, backup radios, transport cages and fire extinguishers. The new uniforms are a light shade of gray and are reflective.

Copy paper usage has been reduced “an estimated 80 percent” by submitting electronic reports and all parking tickets are issued electronically now.

Parking software now integrates with banner.

The patrols cars have new logos that are reflective.

All officers are currently CPR and AED certified through the Red Cross.

Police applicants now go through a more rigorous hiring procedure.

The emergency response plans for the university have been updated.

Additionally bicycle officers have returned to provide “community-oriented policing” that lets officers interact with students, faculty and staff. It also lets officers respond to calls quicker during rush hour.

Mahon plans on getting the department accredited, which shows a department holds itself to a different set of standards that have been recognized nationally.

Mahon previously had an administrative role-training police in Iraq.

He says supervising the station’s been way harder than expected but the challenge is his favorite part of the job.

The hardest part of his job is the preparing for the unknown.

“You’ve got that possibility for the active shooter, the bomb threat, the actual bomb, any number of events that can occur that always going through the back of my mind that I’m trying to see how we can go forward and see improve our tactics in order to take care of these situations,” Mahon said.