Q&A with Office Connor Tibbe, Newest Member of Pitt Greensburg Campus Police

Officer Connor Tibbe is a new police officer with the University of Pittsburgh Police Department. He joined the school’s police force in the beginning of June. Before working at Pitt, Officer Tibbe spent several years at the Westmoreland and Fayette County Sheriff’s Departments.

Q: What do you enjoy most about being a police officer? 

A: The ability to serve my community and provide a safe environment for all people is what really brought me into law enforcement. At Pitt specifically, I love to be able to patrol around campus and stop and speak with students and have great conversations.

Q: Is there a favorite place you like to be on campus where the people are most welcome?

A: One thing that we do here at Pitt Greensburg specifically is CA (Community Assistant) checks. That is when we stop in and talk to the CA on duty in each dorm every night and see how things are going. They are always so welcoming and helpful to us and have made me laugh hard on numerous occasions. 

Q: Do you drink coffee every day, like a morning ritual?  If so, how do you like your coffee?  

A: Whenever I have to work a morning shift here on campus I cannot operate without some sort of coffee in my system. I am not the best coffee drinker out there so I do not believe that I will ever be able to drink it “straight black.” What I normally do is make a concoction of 25% hot chocolate and 75% medium roast coffee. Other than that, my morning ritual consists of a run around 5am and then taking my dog up into the mountains.

Q: Have there been any close calls or dangerous situations that you’d like to share?

A: In previous jobs I have been in tense situations but luckily, Pitt Greensburg is an exceptionally safe campus and other than the occasional medical emergency, things tend to be pretty calm here.

Q: Do you officers buddy up for protection when you go out or do you go alone?

A: It all depends on the call. If a student needed into their dorm because they were accidentally locked out, normally only one officer would need to respond. In more serious situations it is always reassuring to have backup right there with you.

Q: Do you think we have a safe campus or is it that you guys make it a safe campus? 

A: Where the campus is located makes it inherently a safe and quiet place to attend university. This is not in the heart of Pittsburgh or even in the center of a larger town such as Greensburg. Despite the location, there is always a risk of something happening and that is where we come in.

Our role as police here on campus is to provide students, staff, faculty, and visitors with a safe place to experience the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. We perform patrols, conduct traffic stops, check on suspicious activities and persons, and many more actions in order to keep everyone safe. A large factor for safety in the Pitt community is also the people of the campus. Without people having a safety focused mindset, our work can only go so far.