The new Team Leader, Deputy Saldivar, makes a relationship with the students the main priority.
By Savannah Simmons, Opinion Editor
Helping the community has been the theme of Deputy Nick Saldivar’s career and is a theme he brings to his new position as Team Leader at the Valley Sheriff’s station.
Deputy Saldivar started as the new Team Leader, in charge of all the security officers at Valley, in April and has goals of growing the sheriff’s office with more personnel to better patrol and engage with students and the community as a whole.
“With the right mindset you could affect a younger demographic,” said Deputy Saldivar when talking about what he was excited about for Valley. “I think having a chance to bring my training, experience and knowledge that I’ve had from working the streets into an environment such as this college, I’ll be able to give some guidance and help students and the community while being at this college.”
Working in law enforcement for 16 years is where Deputy Saldivar gets all of that experience and knowledge he is proud to share. Working lockup in the jail and court systems is where he started, Century Station covering Watts, Willowbrook and Compton is where he found himself next, and before coming to Valley he searched for parolees at large from the AB109 who skipped out on checking in while working for the Parole Compliance Unit. Valley’s change of pace has Deputy Saldivar focusing on building a better relationship with the school and it’s students to change any negative outlook that may be had about law enforcement.
“I’m a big proponent in interaction with kids in the community.” expressed Deputy Saldivar. “I think that’s the best way to fix any bad taste people might have.”
Walking around campus, Deputy Saldivar is committed to treating everyone with respect and is sure to be seen smiling and interacting with students. He wants people to know that officers in law enforcement aren’t robots, but human beings too, so do not hesitate to stop and say hello as he’d be more than happy to chat.
When asked about his favorite moments on the job, Deputy Saldivar doesn’t immediately go to tell a wild story about chasing a criminal but instead expresses first his love for participating in toy drives, helping the less fortunate during the holiday season and working with partners. His want to help and be involved with the community is admirable and clearly what drives Deputy Saldivar to do his best at creating an environment where everyone feels safe and protected by himself and his officers.
“There’s nothing better than getting a bad guy off the street or working up a case where you couldn’t find the guy who’d been hiding out from you then finally catching him, that’s what we do,” said Deputy Saldivar. “But at the same time, there has to be something bigger than that.”