Celina ISD names police chief, Celina Record

Celina ISD names district's chief of police Lisa Ferguson, lferguson@starlocalmedia.com Mar 25, 2016 0 Bobby Manson on Monday was named the first chief of Celina ISD’s recently established police department, which should be operational by the start of the 2017-17 school year. Celina ISD Security Director Bobby Manson has been named chief of the district’s recently established police department. Manson was named to the position Monday by Superintendent Rick DeMasters during a school board meeting Monday. “We feel like with Mr. Manson’s position with the district and his qualifications and training put him in the best possible position to take on this role,” DeMasters said. In January Celina ISD board members voted to establish a districtwide police force to respond to law enforcement-related issues and incidents that occur on its campuses. The district is the only one of its size in Collin County that does not employ its own police force or a school resource officer. It relies on the Celina Police Department for assistance when needed. Celina ISD’s police department is expected to be operational by the start of the 2016-17 school year. It will be headquartered in an office at Celina High School. Like other law-enforcement agencies, school district police departments are regulated by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement. During its first year of operation, Manson will likely be the only officer on the school district’s police force. “What we’re looking for in this position is more of an educator versus a police officer,” DeMasters has explained. “It’s someone that can be on our campuses at all times that offers us a presence, that can also help educate and that can also help build relationships not just with the students and staff, but also with our parents.” Celina ISD posted a notice about the school police chief position on its website earlier this year and received four applications, including one from Manson, who DeMasters said proved to be the most qualified candidate for the job. Manson has been a district employee for nine years. He began as an engineer in the Information Technology department. Prior to that, he had spent more than two decades working in management capacities for several large corporations. In 2013 he began attending the Collin County Law Enforcement Academy. Prior to completing its program the following year, he was given the job of security director for the school district. Also in 2014, Manson was commissioned as an officer with the Celina Police Department. He spent seven months patrolling the city at night and racked up more than 100 hours of field training in the process. In March of last year, he became a commissioned officer for the Prosper ISD police department. Manson said he will step down from that position once Celina ISD’s police department receives its official certification from the state, which should happen in the coming months. Since graduating from the law enforcement academy, Manson has also received additional training as well as certifications from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in school incident command, emergency planning and crisis management. Being named chief of Celina ISD’s police department is “quite an honor,” he said. “It’s really exciting to be able to start a program from scratch.” Manson said the district does not currently grapple with many law enforcement-related issues among its students. “For the most part, we don’t have the serious problems that some of the other districts have, and I think the foresight of the [school] board and the superintendent to try to intervene with kids and earn their trust and have a relationship with them early on” has made a difference, he said. “I think our biggest challenge right now is just to get in front of those kids before they have the opportunity to make bad choices and maybe we can head some of them off in the right direction.” Manson said he plans to make the department “a world-class operation because the city of Celina and Celina’s school district deserves that.”