Ron Reu, an alumni of the HFM Career and Technical Education (CTE) Criminal Justice program, returned to campus recently to speak with students and share his career success.
Reu, a 2007 graduate of Northville Central School, was on hand to present to both Criminal Justice classes about the use of tasers and what it’s like to work as a police officer. He told the students he had always wanted to go into law enforcement. When it came time to decide on his educational future, he narrowed down his choices to the Criminal Justice and Environmental Conservation programs at CTE.
“I didn’t know if I wanted to be a police officer or an Encon officer,” said Reu. “I figured that if I just went into the Criminal Justice program that I could do whatever form of law enforcement I ended up in.”
After successfully completing the Criminal Justice program and graduating from Northville, he decided to further his education at Cazenovia College located in Central New York. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree in the spring of 2011 and soon after enrolled in the Zone 5 Training Academy. Upon fulfilling his training academy requirements, he went to work part-time as a police officer for the Village of Northville who sponsored his training.
Reu worked with the Northville Police Department for a short time and was eventually hired by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. After working at the sheriff’s office, he decided to take a civil service examination and was then hired by the Gloversville Police Department.
Since his arrival on the Gloversville police force, Reu has risen through the ranks. He currently holds the position of Lieutenant. He is also a member of the Emergency Response Team and serves as a ‘breacher’ where he is in charge of gaining entry into buildings in dangerous situations.
When asked what advice he would give to students that aspire to work in law enforcement, Reu said to jump right in to getting work experience.
“Get a job of any kind so you can get some work experience and prove that you’re going to be a good employee wherever you go,” he said.
Reu said there is a great need for people to work in the law enforcement field these days.
“There is such a need for police officers nationwide, but especially in our community,” he said. “As long as you possess good character traits, have a license, a GED (General Education Development), and no felonies, that’s all you need to get started in law enforcement.”
Reu said being a police officer can be stressful at times, but is also very rewarding.
“It’s high risk, high reward,” he said. “You’re out in the community answering calls for service, helping people at accident scenes by providing first aid, giving people advice on how to handle situations they are in. It’s so rewarding because it’s not the same thing everyday.”
