}
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday, November 9, 1992
5
KU student by day is cop by night
Continued from, Page 1.
him more responsible because he has to be,
but he doesn't act any different when he's out
with friends "he said.
Scaramucci said that because of Thomas's age, most students were surprised when they found out that he was a con.
"They become interested in it and want to learn more about it to find out what he does on a day-to-day basis," he said. "Overall, he doesn't talk about it much with people he doesn't know."
But Michelle Boyd, Thomas's girlfriend,
said that she did not notice any student reaction
to Thomas's profession. Her family and
friends were surprised when they found out
he was a student and a cop.
"They're really surprised that he's able to do both," she said. "He spends a lot of time with it. He gives it all he's got."
--understand people. And it's not uncommon for us to consult someone from the University to assist us in a language barrier, or maybe if there's even a problem with the culture we're not understanding."
A degree is not required for Lawrence police officers, but it helps.
Police chief Ron Olin has a bachelor's degree and a doctorate from KU.
"The job market in the last five years has been so intense that we have been able to hire officers both with and without four-year degrees," he said.
Olin said higher education was encouraged. "I strongly believe in the value of higher education," he said. "I think it adds an extra dimension to the common sense necessary to be a police officer."
Thomas agrees.
"We have a really good emphasis on education at the department," he says. "I think it does help, especially with the diversity of the people we deal with. There are just some things that are so different about people that you can't be taught in a police-related position. You have to go for outside instruction."
He says the University makes the Lawrence beat challenging for police officers.
Fifty-two languages are spoken in Lawrence, "Thomas says, "There are probably not too many towns with 60 or 70 thousand people like that. We get calls, and we can't
--knows? I could have some kind of incident."
Thomas has seen quite a few other cultures. A marine veteran, Thomas was a sergeant for two years. His four-year hitch as an engineer gave him an edge on understanding others. Thomas has been stationed in Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Guam, Panama, Hawaii and California.
Thomas says that part of his military experience helps him with his job.
"I don't think people realize how much it does," he says. "Because being in the military, you deal with people from everywhere. And you live with them. And you learn how to deal with them. And that's the same thing I do as a police officer, because I deal with people's problems."
After his discharge, Thomas set out to be a cop. But he did not take the normal career route. He had a plan that would get him there quicker.
In 1990, as a stepping stone, Thomas took a job as a parking control officer. At the time, he knew that Lawrence had proposed a 1/2-cent sales tax so more officers could be hired. As Thomas predicted, the sales tax passed. In 1991, he applied for a police officer position and resigned from parking control.
Thomas says that his work as a parking control officer allowed him to get his foot in the door and get to know people in the department. By the time he applied, the department knew he was a reliable worker. That led to a good recommendation.
Lt. Ed Brunt was Thomas's boss at the time.
"He's exemplary, trustworthy, innovative and self-motivated," he said. "For someone who didn't want to be a parking control officer, you wouldn't know it."
--knows? I could have some kind of incident."
Thomas faces more danger in a month than most people in a decade.
Thomas has been in some tough situations. He recalls an incident in which two burglaries were cornered by police inside an elementary school.
"Sure, my mom, you know, she always says, 'be safe', and 'wear your vest.' But Thomas has been on his own for awhile. "So she's pretty confident I can take care of myself."
After the school alarm went off, police arrived at the scene to catch one of the burglar's trying to climb out of a window. The other one would not surrender, so police entered the building and hunted him down room by room.
"You never know what to expect when somebody is inside one of those schools," Thomas says. "And they don't want to necessarily hurt a police officer, but they want to get away. And if that means that that's what they have to do, then that's what's going to happen."
During the last armed robbery at Roger's IGA in Lawrence, Thomas was the first one on the scene and found the getaway车. The robber was held up inside. "I was there all night," he says. "And finally the guy gave himself up. It was quite a long standoff."
"I go to parties." He mimics his 'officer friendly' voice: "Hey guys. How's it going? Can you turn it down? Have a good time, but not at the expense of your neighbors.
"I give everybody an easy chance or a first chance, and we have to judge it from there," he says.
Despite police officer stereotypes, Thomas describes himself as easy-going.
--knows? I could have some kind of incident."
"If we have a complaint, we have to act on the complaint. It's a decision that the neighbors make because they're the ones who are going to have to go to court and sign a complaint, not us. But a lot of students don't understand that. They think we're just hassling them."
In the squad room at the Lawrence Police station, office Damon Thomas makes sure a Lawrence man understands the allegations being filed against him.
But he adds, "I'd be lying to you if I said that I had never been to a party that got shut down." Thomas does not go to parties much anymore. When he does go out, people may point or stare.
Daron J. Bennett / KANSAN
"You've got to have a good sense of humor with this job or you won't lest," he says. "The average life expectancy of a police officer after retirement is five years. That's why police officers can retire after 20 years."
"You are seen in a little bit different light," he says. "And you're expected to be a notch up whether you're on duty or off duty."
And despite the stereotype, Thomas does not like coffee, and he says he will not be caught dead in Joe's Doughnut Shop — at least not with his uniform on.
Despite the danger, Thomas loves his job.
"I couldn't imagine myself doing anything else," he says. "Unless I could do calculus.
Then I'd be an architect."
Thomas plans to continue his education. In the next five years, he hopes to be working on a master's degree in anthropology.
Once he gets his master's, Thomas will have the option to change careers.
"I can always teach," he says. "That's something I've always considered. I may get tired of being a police officer after 10 years. And who
--knows? I could have some kind of incident."
In addition to developing his mind, Thomas wants to develop his career. The next step up from patrolman is detective.
"Everyone aspires to be promoted," he says. "No one wants to be a patrolman forever. Sure, only 20 percent ever get promoted above patrolman. There's not very many positions available. Hopefully, through my experience and education, I might be up on someone else, because that's when it does get competitive."
But Thomas does not aspire to be a police chief.
"Not especially in Lawrence, he says. "It's a pretty tough job. In any college town, I would imagine, it's really tough. And Lawrence seems to be a couple of notches higher. There's always something going on. There's always some kind of controversy. And that's to be expected. It comes with the job."
Whether Thomas teaches in the future, or continues his career in law enforcement, he will do it in Lawrence.
Male cheerleaders contribute new dimension to squads
"I like it here," he says. "I think it's a great place. I mean it really is. I like it well enough to decide that this is where I want to live."
By Jay Koester
By Jay Koester Special to the Kansan
They yell, they flip, they hurl women into the air.
The men serve three different purposes as part of the squad, said Dave Barmum, junior varsity spirit squad coach.
Females are the ones usually associated with cheerleading, but while watching the University of Kansas spirit squad, one cannot help noticing the 16 men that make up the male portion of the varsity and junior varsity squads.
"First, they add a new dimension to stunting," Barmum said. "They allow us to perform more difficult stunts than would otherwise be possible. They also make the women more visible to the crowd by lifting them."
Their second function is to add deep voices to the group. Deeper voices travel farther and help the squad communicate with the crowd. Barium
The males bring a different point of view to crowd involvement. "Barnum said. "Many of them have been involved in other sports and can use that experience to help get the crowd involved. They know what it is like to be out there on the field."
The main thing the squad is trying to do differently this year is get the crowd more involved through crowd-involvement cheers and the use of
signs, Barnum said.
The males do just about everything the females do, except dance. They fit in well and help complement the talents of the females on the squad, said Tracy Gaulting, Yates Center senior and member of the junior varsity squad.
"I can't imagine cheering without them now," Gaulding said. "I did back in high school, but it's hard to imagine going back to that again, because they are such an important part of the group."
While all the members stressed the positive aspects of cheering, they said that there are some negative stereotypes attached to male yell leaders.
"Back in high school, when you walked into the stadium, people would always yell at you," said Bryan Cowan, Overland Park freshman on the e.JV squad. "They would be calling us fags and stuff, but we just ignored it. It is not a problem at KU."
Cowan said cheerleading also had its share of embarrassing moments. He once cheered through pre-game with his uniform on backwards, and Barnum fell while performing on national television when he was a well leader for Georgetown University.
"It was my first varsity basketball game and we were playing Syracuse on CBS," Barnum said. "At halftime, I was doing flips across the court when I fell on my butt at halfcourt."
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