This fall, the incoming freshmen aren’t the only new class coming to UConn. With 11 new officers – one of the largest groups to date – the Police Department has its share of fresh faces who will help make campus welcoming for the newest Huskies.

“We are very excited about the hires we have. They are a fantastic, enthusiastic group who want to be here,” says Deputy Chief Hans Rhynhart. “They come from all walks of life.”

Among the Department’s recruiting class is a former federal air marshal, a former Hartford officer, a former UConn Health officer, a recent UConn graduate, and a member of the military returning from deployment in Cuba.

Jonathan Santiago was deployed in Cuba when he received an email from UConn that he had been hired for its police department. The security guard, who was in a training session at the time, says he was so overjoyed he almost ran out of his classroom screaming.

“At UConn, the police staff is like a family, Santiago says. “They’re not just there to do their jobs, they get to know each other.”

Before candidates can be hired, they must first pass a Connecticut Chiefs of Police written examination, but the testing process does not stop there. They then have to pass UConn-specific exams before they are sent to train at a Police Officer and Standards Training Council-approved police academy. The academies in Hartford, Meriden, and New Britain have frequent exams that test physical fitness and an officer’s mastery of skills ranging from self-defense to laws of arrest, firearms, and offensive and defensive driving.

The training is arduous. In Hartford, new UConn hire Jacqueline Twiss says she and her classmates had to run two-by-two through the city streets for distances of five miles or more, while a police cruiser led the pack. Although sometimes the scene resembled a parade, with a throng of people waving to the trainees, the runs were exhausting, like much of the rest of the training.

“They push you to that point of exhaustion constantly from day one,” says Twiss, one of four new female officers. “When you’re pushing yourself like that, you have to dig down and find that drive.”

The new officers, including Twiss and Santiago, were able to be hired after legislation was passed in June 2014 to allow the University to conduct its own examination process, independent of the state Department of Administrative Services. The change in legislation was supported by the University’s leaders, including President Susan Herbst. In the past, UConn had to wait for the state to administer each round of qualifying exams to candidates – a process that could take years. Being able offer the exams more frequently gives UConn greater autonomy in hiring, Rhynhart says.

With the new officers also come more opportunities for the UConn Police Department to devote more attention to specialized units such as investigative work, and to expand its presence at the regional campuses. The Department plans to move a group of its veteran officers to the downtown Hartford campus, which is slated to open in 2017.

“We’re forming stronger ties and fostering a relationship with the Hartford Police Department and creating a partnership downtown,” says Rhynhart.

Once the new officers have completed their police academy training and start at UConn, they will each assist a field training officer for 16 weeks until they are ready to patrol on their own. The influx of 11 rookies to train will be a challenge, Rhynhart says, but it is one the Department embraces – and will lead to a more supportive presence on campus.

“We want a bigger footprint during the day,” he says, “and for people to see us more.”

Among the additions to UConn’s more noticeable police front will be recent UConn graduate Tyler Hopson ’13 (CLAS). A native of Hebron, Conn., he was a sociology major and a sprinter on the Division I track and field team. For Hopson, becoming a UConn police officer is fulfilling a lifelong dream. Not only has he set his sights on police work since his freshman year of high school, but protecting the UConn community has become something of a family tradition: his grandfather was a UConn firefighter, and his uncle a UConn police officer.

“It’s a dream come true to be at the place my family has worked for so long,” Hopson says. “I’ve always had my heart in UConn, so it’s an honor to be here.”