University Police presents annual service, community, team awards

University Police presents annual service, community, team awards

The Northwest Missouri State University Police Department (UPD), during the institution's fall All-Employee Meeting on Wednesday, recognized University employees as well as a Maryville healthcare team with its annual service awards.

Dr. Shay Malone, the assistant vice president of community engagement and institutional excellence at Northwest, received the Monica C. McCollough University Police Department Service Award for her efforts to connect police officers with students through organizational engagement, ongoing training and one-on-one mentorship. The opportunities led by Malone and the Center for Engagement and Community Connection assist the UPD with its preventative and responsive efforts throughout the campus.

Dr. Bayo Joachim, a professor of communication in the School of Communication and Mass Media, received the Raymond L. Ottman University Police Department Community Service Award. Joachim, who has been a member of Northwest's faculty since 1990, is known for connecting with students and employees and sharing resources and life lessons long after they graduate or retire.

In addition to a plaque, Joachim received $250 to donate to an organization of his choice.

The emergency room and behavioral health staffs at Mosaic Medical Center-Maryville received the Clarence Green Jr. Team Culture Award, which Scott Koelliker, the medical center's president, accepted on their behalf.

"President Koelliker and his emergency room team, led by Paula Goodridge, and his behavioral health unit, led by Teri Alvarez, respond to the needs of our students and employees with kind, consistent mental health care 24 hours a day and 7 days a week and 365 days a year," UPD Lt. Marcus Holmes said in presenting the award.

About the awards

The McCollough Award recognizes Northwest students or employees who are not members of the UPD but have assisted the department and its officers by offering solutions to prevent and solve crime or in achieving its goals.

It is named for Monica McCollough, who served UPD as a student dispatcher, full-time dispatcher and office manager from 2002 to 2014. She improved department processes and implemented programs that continue to serve the Northwest community, including the Safe Ride Home program, which provides safe and timely transportation to students, and the Santa Cops program to assist families in Nodaway County with Christmas gifts.

The Ottman Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates ongoing community leadership through contributions to building a sense of unity and purpose. The recipient must be involved in volunteer programs, social groups or outreach centers. The recipient also demonstrates positive values and behaviors that inspire others to emulate and effect positive changes.

It is named for Raymond Ottman, a member of the UPD for 15 years. Ottman implemented resources and programs - such as Pizza and Police, CoCo with the PoPo, Bobby Palooza and Partners in Prevention, among others - that continue to serve the Northwest community. He departed Northwest in 2015 as a lieutenant of operations to become police chief at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.

The Clarence Green Jr. Team Culture Award recognizes a team, through their intentional actions, that demonstrates a shared mindset by leveraging each member's perspective and strengths through fostered collaboration and open dialogue, which instills trust and drives engagement.

Green served Northwest in numerous capacities during a 28-year span from 1996 until retiring from the University in 2024. He was appointed university police chief in 1997 and remained in that role until his retirement. In 2019, he was named Northwest's vice president of culture, and he served as the institution's interim president during the 2022-23 academic year. He currently is the dean and director of North Central Missouri College's campus in Savannah.