Transition to Public Safety and Service

Dear Mount Holyoke College community,

As you will recall from earlier communications, Mount Holyoke’s campus safety functions joined the division of student life in January. Since that time, we have been planning for the transition of the department from a resource shared with Smith to our own dedicated department.

Staffing Updates

The separation of campus forces became official on July 1, and Raymond LaBarre has chosen to stay at Mount Holyoke College and become the director of the department. The list of current Mount Holyoke department staff can be found here. 

Reimagining Campus Safety Committee

Co-chaired by LaBarre and Latrina L. Denson, associate dean of students for community and inclusion, this committee will examine the overall policies, procedures and practices regarding campus safety and provide feedback and suggestions on change. Ongoing efforts include creating a new mission, vision and values statement; examining current practices and policies for blind spots and biases; identifying and assisting with the development of diversity, equity and inclusion trainings; assist in the development of enhanced training models; and integrate members of the department into the community for learning, teaching and participation in events that foster a sense of belonging. 

The committee consists of students, staff and faculty, and their first recommendation was to change the name of the department to Public Safety and Service. You will see this new name reflected immediately on the website and over time on physical items such as buildings, vehicles and the like. Most importantly, in the coming weeks and months you will hear more about the specific actions being taken to reimagine safety and service at the College. I want to thank Latrina and Ray for their leadership, recognize the committee for its work and thank every community member who has shared feedback and ideas to date.

Questions and suggestions about the committee and its work can be addressed to either Ray or Latrina.

Warmly,

Marcella Runell Hall
Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students

Members of the committee are: 

• Shannon Da Silva, associate director of equity and compliance, Title IX and Section 504 coordinator 
• Latrina L Denson, co-chair, associate dean of students for community and inclusion
• Josh Dufresne, lieutenant, public safety and service
• Alexander Gonzalez, dispatcher, public safety and service
• Chelsea Gyimah ’23
• Kayla Hinkson-Grant ‘21
• Raymond LaBarre, co-chair, director of public safety and service
• Alaina Lee ‘21
• Kevin McCaffrey, director of government and community relations
• Alex Moreno ’22
• Carol Stewart, director of staff diversity and inclusion initiatives
• Nashalie Vazquez-Pacheco, associate director of residential life
• Lucas Wilson, professor of Africana Studies and Economics