The annual Behind the Badge event at the University of Houston, now in its fourth year, provided 174 students, faculty, and staff an opportunity to meet, converse, question, and learn about the local law enforcement agencies and university departments supporting safety on campus.
In addition to UHPD, law enforcement agencies such as METRO Police, Harris County Sheriff’s Office Vehicular Crimes Division, and Harris County Precinct 6 were present. Administration and Finance departments attending included FIXIT, Fire & Life Safety, and the Office of Emergency Management. Other attending departments included The Woman and Gender Resource Center, and the Center for Forensic Excellence.
“I feel like every year it gets bigger and bigger,” said UHPD officer Amir Watkins. “And I’m glad to see it at the beginning of the year and that we’re getting students to come out and introduce them to different departments that work with UHPD and the campus.”
A question that Watkins and UHPD officers received from students during Behind the Badge was a simple yet important one, “Where is UHPD located?” Watkins shared with students that UHPD is located on Wheeler Avenue, with its closest buildings being the UH Child Care Center, Cougar Place, and TDECU Stadium.
Behind the Badge coincided with the Weeks of Welcome activities, and for some students, it proved beneficial as they learned about how the departments can support them.
One of those students, Inaya Mehmood, was ecstatic to learn about FIXIT, especially since she lives on campus.
‘I didn’t realize that we had a department like that, that we could call and ask for help,” said the freshman.
She added that attending Behind the Badge is a must for any student.
“These are good resources to know,” said Mehmood. “It has something everyone can benefit from a little bit.”
One benefit the attendees received was the opportunity to try out impairment goggles from HCSO’s Vehicular Crimes Division and try to walk a straight line. The impairment goggles simulate how a person sees when they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs, depending on the goggles.
HCSO’s Vehicular Crimes Division had six impairment goggles for attendees.
Tess Rowland, Community Traffic Safety Initiatives Liaison for HCSO’s Vehicular Crimes Division said there was a lot of shock from students once they put on the goggles.
“I think a lot of them were quite surprised at the different levels," said Rowland.
The impaired goggles proved to be one of the most popular tables at Behind the Badge.
“I’m glad that they were able to really experience it and see that it is impairing,” said Rowland. “And hopefully this transfers that they make that choice that they’ll never get behind the wheel [while impaired].”
For Nathanel Manzano, the experience wearing the goggles was a memorable one calling it “insane” how much the impairment goggles altered his vision.
First-time Behind the Badge attendee Daniela Alfaro was astounded at how the impairment goggles blurred her vision. The senior noted how difficult it was to walk a straight line with the goggles.
Aside from the impairment goggles, Alfaro mentioned the event led her to discover departments she was unaware of such as the Women and Gender Resource Center.
“It was nice to learn that they’re their own department and where they’re located on campus, as well as learning about their social media and what they do on campus,” said Alfaro.
Behind the Badge introduces the UH community to departments on campus and city organizations. For Vania Mirza, meeting one of these organizations – METRO Police – was just what she needed.
“I’m starting to use the METRO, and my parents are concerned about it,” said the Media Productions freshman. “I wanted to reassure them that it’s safe, so I grabbed a couple of pamphlets to show them that there’s police actively there and there are services here actively looking out for us.”
