by David Reagan
Staff writer
Jon Clouse’s last day on the job as director of safety and police was Feb. 29, which marked a change not only for him, but for SE’s history. A workplace legacy was handed down as Clouse retired after 24 years at SE.
As he neared retirement, he said he found leaving bittersweet. He has grown used to his time working at SE, but said he is looking forward to the relaxation of fishing, riding his motorcycle and spending time with his granddaughter.
‘When I started in ’88 we didn’t have marked cars. We had a tiny office, very little equipment, we shared two radios, and two flashlights I believe.” Clouse reminisced, “That was basically our equipment.”
Clouse’s single position, as the director of both the police and safety, has now grown to the point that the departments are splitting apart to become their own entities.
In his absence, Clouse’s has recommended that Police Capt. Stacy Ballew be promoted to interim chief of police and Assistant Director of Safety Steve Harmon be promoted to interim director of safety. Both of the positions are interim until allowed to be officially approved in June.
Clouse said, “I think they’ll do a great job and continue the department on its upward trend. I don’t have any doubts about that at all. I feel like I’m leaving it in good hands.”
Ballew has experience on the police force before his six years at SE, working 20 years with the Durant Police Department. Harmon also brings his own background as a retired highway patrolman, 20 years on the job before SE.
Clouse said, “I really feel like we have upped the level of police and safety at the university, especially in the past 10 years. We’ve had the support of the university, the former presidents, starting with Glen Johnson especially. We’ve had the support of the community – it takes that.”
Clouse said, “It was pretty…interesting.” He smiled and shook his head, continuing, “Now, we’ve moved up to…top notch equipment and a tremendous office.”
Ballew described Clouse as a man who was both personal and tactical, never losing focus on the importance of security for the campus: “I think his sincere desire to serve the campus community is what drove him and his true care about people.”
Describing his initial motivation, Clouse said, “There was a lot of areas I felt we needed to advance in. That was my goal…. I wanted to make sure I’d done everything possible to make the university safe- that I didn’t leave something undone… The last thing I would want is for somebody to get hurt and think ‘maybe I could’ve stopped that.’ It’s a level of responsibility.”
Besides the physical change in the growth of the department, the crosswalk on First Street leading to the VPAC is a project he worked on for a while as one of his personal goals.
The recent addition of the LYNX security system, made possible by the acquisition of the Cops Technology Grant (#2010CKWX0270). This is also the brainchild of Clouse, which he said he has been working to acquire for years. LYNX is a security company specializing in mass emergency notification, a state of the art technology created independent of the school to ensure faster communication between the public and safety officials.
The system connects the red push buttons, all the silent alarms in classrooms and offices, all the video cameras, the digital ticketing devices, the police car computers, the police radios and the office computers.
Ballew attributed the department’s improvements in working condition, equipment, worker’s pay, manpower, doubled department size and overall job quality to Clouse: “He took it from the Stone Age to the 21st century. He cares about the job, the students and the university as a whole, but is laid back and humble….I hope to be able to continue that.”
Ballew described his upcoming position saying, “Those are pretty big shoes to fill.” He said his intentions are to carry forward and improve on what Clouse has already done by making the department more professional, advanced, community-oriented and connected with the faculty than even the current state.
President Larry Minks said, “Jon Clouse has ably served Southeastern for more than 20 years as a law enforcement professional and he will be missed by the campus community. We appreciate his dedication, attitude, and effort in maintaining a safe environment for our students, faculty, staff, and visitors on campus over these many years. His willingness to work with people has served him very well in his position. We wish him the very best in retirement.”
In his time at SE, Clouse described the rewards as: “The people I’ve met, the friends I’ve made – you can’t put a value on it, it’s unbelievable. It’s a place I felt I could actually make a difference, and feel that I have. That’s really is worth a fortune too.”
“It has been great…This is a great community and a great university. I mean that. I really do.”
