At least 14 UMB Police and Public Safety employees have been named UMB Employee of the Month since the program began.
Photo: In October 1986, security officer John Haynes was the department’s first winner.
This story is one in a series celebrating UMB Police and Public Safety’s 50-year history, the milestones that shaped us, and the work we continue today.
What makes a great employee? Members of the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Employee of the Month selection committee frequently wrestle with that question. Ultimately, they rely on two criteria to make their selection.
“The first is general excellence including excellence in performance, making a difference to the University community, acting as a role model for peers and colleagues, and excellence as a team player,” says Michele Carter Hunt, MA, senior consultant in Human Resource Services. “The second criterion is exemplification of our core values.”
These criteria have slightly changed since the program was established in July 1985. Back then, candidates had to perform at a consistently high level and be viewed as a positive role model. “The employee should be punctual, regular in attendance, and willing to provide additional time and effort when necessary,” according to an article in The Voice, UMB’s newspaper at the time.
Consideration was given to those who helped save the University time, effort, material, or money, or eliminated safety hazards. Winners would receive a $50 savings bond and a certificate, as well as an article and photo in The Voice.
Public Safety Employees Shine
Nearly 500 UMB employees have received the honor in the past 40 years. Of those, at least 14 were members of the UMB Department of Police and Public Safety.
The University does not have a comprehensive record of all Employee of the Month winners. However, most winners could be found by reading through decades worth of newsletters from the archives.
The first winner from Public Safety came just one year after the program was established. At the time, the seven deans and heads of administrative units that reported directly to the UMB president could nominate only one individual each month. In October 1986, security officer John Haynes was the department’s first winner.
Haynes worked at the front desk of the University of Maryland School of Nursing. He had a “big smile and friendly hello,” according to the article in The Voice, and was known for his green thumb. Once, a student brought Haynes her dying plants. “Sure enough, he was able to get them growing.”
Recognizing the Rib Man
Officer William Moses was the fourth Public Safety employee to take home the prize in 1991. The Safe Ride van driver was on his regular route when he noticed a man following a woman as she walked to her car. In an instant, the man snatched the woman’s purse and took off running. Moses jumped from the van and took off running.
“You couldn’t outrun Mo,” said security officer William Groh, the department’s longest-serving member, who has been with UMB Police and Public Safety more than 60 years. “He had legs like a gazelle.”
Moses caught up to the suspect. Radioing for help, but still on his own, Moses and the suspect began to fight.
“The suspect was picking me up, trying to shake me off,” he said in a 1991 interview in The Voice. “It was wild. I wasn’t hurt that bad. I’m just glad I was in the right place at the right time. She got her purse back and we got a criminal off the street.”
For his efforts, the officer — who was known to fellow officers as “the rib man” for his gourmet barbecue skills — earned a departmental citation for bravery and was named UMB Employee of the Month.
Photo: In 1999, James T. Hill, left, vice president for administration and finance, and UMB President David J. Ramsay presented PFC Shirleen Berry with the Founders Week Award for Public Service.
Winning the Trifecta
Eight years later, PFC Shirleen Berry stood out in a league of her own — winning UMB Employee of the Year, the Founders Week Award for Public Service, and the Board of Regents Staff Award for Public Service.
As the department’s victim-witness coordinator, Berry worked with people on their worst day. She advocated for victims, assisted them with court procedures, and established the department’s Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) program alongside Cpl. William “Archie” Griffin.
Berry was Maryland’s first certified victim-assistance specialist — one of only 56 in the nation at the time. She created UMB’s Victims’ Rights Conference, which continued for at least five years and had more than 250 attendees in 2004.
Her Employee of the Month nominator wrote: "Since her first day, Officer Berry has assumed a role as a person who gets the job done, is eager to get involved and will take on whatever challenge is presented to her. Officer Berry devotes numerous off-duty hours travelling as far away as Rice University [in Houston, Texas] instructing and promoting women's safety and the Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) program. She is currently involved in a RAD for Kids project."
Berry was respected by her peers for her fairness, reliability, and professionalism. She always had her partner's back, Groh said.
“There were quite a few times I was scuffling with a prisoner, and I’d look behind me and [Shirleen] would grab the guy and pull him back,” he said. “She was a fantastic young lady. You would have loved her.”
Public Safety Today
Four current UMB Police and Public Safety employees have received the honor since 2016 — one police officer, two security officers, and one administrative employee.
“It’s wonderful to see our team members recognized by the University,” says Thomas Leone, MSL, assistant vice president for public safety and chief of police. “Public Safety’s long history of Employee of the Month honorees speaks to our dedication to service excellence and to living UMB’s core values every day.”