SPARTAC draws in new members, builds on original team

On March 21, the Brockport Police Department welcomed six new members to the SPARTAC Program (Students, Police and Residents Together Against Crime). The volunteers took part in the four hour training session and will now begin a field training program. The program now has 10 volunteers. In the front row from left to right: Garret Breister, Eileen Ryerse, Kent Blair and Stacey Bartlett. Back row: Fran Welch, Matthew Nauerth, John Brugger and Stefanie Dickinson. Not shown in the picture are Craig Hadden and Mark McDaniel.

SPARTAC draws in new members, builds on original team

Six new members joined four current members of the Brockport’s Students, Police and Residents Together Against Crime (SPARTAC) team. The new volunteers participated in a four hour training session and are in the midst of a field training program before they begin their foot patrols.

Sgt. Mark Cuzzupoli, Community Services Coordinator, said SPARTAC members are an integral part of the volunteer force of the village. “They are an extra set of eyes and ears out there on the weekends,” he said. “Members of SPARTAC have been involved with seven driving while intoxicated arrests, they see a car going down the road erratically, call it in, and the officers have made the arrests.”

The volunteers also call in loud parties, disorderly conduct and other disturbances to the officers who respond and deal with the situations.

New member Kent Blair was a member of the Henrietta Fire District for many years before moving to the area. “Being involved with the fire service and coming from a family of career firefighters, I have it in my blood to serve the community where I reside,” he said.

Blair said the interactions with the police officers and the training he went through gave him a new respect for the officers and the village. “I can tell you that in the five hours I was on my ride along, we did not get even a 10-minute break,” he said. “Working with the community and supporting the residents to help maintain a friendly, peaceful environment is rewarding.”

Stacey Bartlett, a SUNY Brockport student who grew up in Brockport, said she joined SPARTAC “because I wanted to take an active part in helping to make Brockport a better and safer place to live, especially since it’s my hometown. I’m a criminal justice major and plan to go into law enforcement but since that is a couple years off I’m doing what I can now,” she said.

“They really go strong in the good weather and when college is in session,” Cuzzupoli said. “They are on foot patrol and cover various sectors within the village.”

Now that they have completed the in-class session, Cuzzupoli said the SPARTAC team will participate in ride-alongs with the officers and will also work with a veteran member on how to deal with the “practical” stuff – operating the police radio, what types of incidents to report, observation and reporting skills and village rules and regulations. “Their training mimics the training a police officer undergoes,” he said. “One of the main things we stress in the training, though, is that the safety of the SPARTAC member comes first.”

In addition to patrolling the streets, the volunteers help out during parades, National Night Out events and the Brockport Arts Festival each August.

“I’m glad this program is still going strong after four years,” Cuzzupoli said.