November 2, 2009
TO THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY
Dear Colleagues:
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dustin Olson as our new Chief of Police, effective today.
Mr. Olson has a strong commitment to working with our campus and community members to ensure a safe living, learning, and working environment for our students, staff, faculty, and visitors. As the Assistant Chief of Police at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, for the past ten years, he has demonstrated effective leadership in meeting the needs of a diverse campus community. He is highly regarded for his collaborative, community-oriented approach to policing, and has twice been honored as Police Officer of the Year at UNLV. In 2007 he received the Annual Award for Administrative Excellence from the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators. Mr. Olson is also an associate faculty member at the College of Professional Studies at Regis University, where he has taught undergraduate criminology courses and developed a graduate-level course on "Ethics and Positions of Power."
Mr. Olson holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice and an M.S. in Crisis and Emergency Management from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He is in the process of completing a second master's degree in Criminal Justice. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy. He was an administrative and personnel chief in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1989 to 1998, and received numerous honors and medals for his service, including the National Defense Service Medal and selection as Joint Military Service Member of the Year.
I extend my sincere thanks to Associate Vice Chancellor Ron Cortez, chair of our search advisory committee, and to each of the committee members listed below for their hard work and wise counsel. I also thank our Academic Senate and all the members of our campus community who provided valuable input and advice during the search process.
On behalf of our campus, I would like to take this opportunity to again express our heartfelt appreciation to former Chief of Police Bill Bean for his 34 years of devoted leadership and service. We also thank Captain Mike Foster for so ably stepping in as Acting Chief of Police during the transition period.
I hope you will all join me in welcoming Chief of Police Dustin Olson and his partner, Kirsten Gabriel, to our UCSB community.
Sincerely,
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
Search Advisory Committee for the Chief of Police
Ron Cortez, Chair; Associate Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services
Charlie Arreola, Undergraduate Student, Associated Students President and Former President of the Residence Halls Association
Carolyn Buford, Associate Dean of Students, Office of Student Life
Christine Griffin, Special Projects Analyst, Administrative Services
Colleen Ho, Graduate Student, Graduate Students Association Representative
Chad Mandala, Undergraduate Student, Associated Students Representative
Melanie Matson, Director, Rape Prevention Education Program, Women’s Center
Claudine Michel, Director and Professor, Center for Black Studies Research
Victor Rios, Assistant Professor, Sociology
Clyde Woods, Associate Professor, Black Studies
Walter Yuen, Professor, Mechanical Engineering
Consultant to the Committee:
Ricardo Alcaíno, Director, Office of Equal Opportunity