Community Programs Manager Sarah Rice received the Law Enforcement and Security Coalition of Hawaii’s Elwood J. McGuire Award, recognizing her contributions to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. The award is presented to an individual for outstanding service, support and assistance or activity that has benefited the fields of law enforcement, private security or criminal justice. The individual who receives this award must have made a significant contribution for a period of at least five years in the state of Hawaiʻi.
Rice has been with UH Mānoa’s DPS for five years. During this time, she developed a community policing plan to foster trust, align DPS policies with the community’s values, embrace technology, prioritize community engagement, invest in training and focus on the well-being of officers and the people they serve. The programs cultivated by Rice demonstrates the principles of community policing by strengthening community trust through active and inclusive community collaboration.
This summer, Rice collaborated with the university community to host UH Mānoa’s first ever full-scale active shooter training exercise. This involved the coordination of law enforcement efforts, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Honolulu Police Department and DPS and the recruitment and training of hundreds of role players from the university. Rice created a curriculum and trained several hundred university faculty, staff and students to respond to an active shooter.
For the past five years, Rice has led UH through the Jeanne Clery Act reporting requirements. The Clery Act is a federal law that requires all colleges and universities to maintain and disclose policies and statistical information about crime committed on or near campus. Rice facilitated compliance with the demands of the Clery Act by publishing and distributing an officer guide book for quick reference. She is also the first person in the State of Hawaiʻi to earn a Clery compliance officer certification through the National Association of Clery Compliance Officer and Professionals.
In addition to the projects, Rice maintains her regular duties of strategic planning, grant administration, media coordination, emergency notifications and timely warnings and compiling the annual security report.
