{"id":27928,"date":"2018-08-20T14:30:53","date_gmt":"2018-08-20T18:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom2\/2018\/08\/20\/first-public-safety-director-hired\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T16:23:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T20:23:46","slug":"first-public-safety-director-hired","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/08\/20\/first-public-safety-director-hired\/","title":{"rendered":"First Public Safety Director Hired"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

The recently appointed Director of Public Safety Deborah Crafts.<\/p><\/div>\n

You could be forgiven if you mistook Northern Essex Community College<\/a>\u2019s new director of public safety as a student.<\/p>\n

At five-foot nothing and dressed in plain clothes, Deborah Crafts, who prefers the moniker Chief, is accustomed to blending in seamlessly in her work environment. It is not uncommon for her to be mistaken for someone else including the \u201cPower Point girl\u201d and the \u201cGirl who gets the coffee\u201d. She doesn\u2019t object since she makes some of her best observations while hiding in plain sight.<\/p>\n

Though the Melrose resident is quick to shrug off such stereotypes, don\u2019t be misled by her easy demeanor and casual style. This Chief has chops. With more than 30 years of campus policing experience, a bachelor\u2019s degree in criminal justice from Northeastern University, and an MBA from Bentley University she has both street and classroom credibility.<\/p>\n

With that credibility comes ideas and with ideas comes change. The biggest change, she anticipates for the NECC community is a comprehensive safety program that includes a commitment to \u201ctransparency\u201d.<\/p>\n

Crafts adheres to the \u201c6 pillars of 21st century policing\u201d one of which is building trust and legitimacy and one being community policing and crime reduction.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople desire to know what\u2019s going on in their community. Within the boundaries of the law it\u2019s our job to make sure people are informed,\u201d she said. \u201cI will share with them what they need to know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just recently, there were two incidents \u2013 one on the Lawrence campus and one near it – which Crafts was quick to report to the community via email. While these notifications will be coming more frequently, she noted, that it does not mean crime has increased.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt simply means that as a community we are more aware of what is happening,\u201d she wrote. \u201cI believe in the philosophy that awareness is 90% of avoiding an incident.\u201d Public safety is a team effort and Crafts encourages faculty, staff, and students to pick up the phone and call the public safety office at 3333 if they notice anything unusual or dial 911 if they witness a crime or have a medical emergency.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want anyone to be afraid to call,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s the little things that really make a difference,\u201d she said. \u201cBother us. That\u2019s what the phone number is there for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Campus policing is almost unrecognizable compared to decades ago when \u201csecurity guards opened doors,\u201d Crafts said. It has undergone a metamorphosis that now includes, to a large degree, technology, and she has vigilant about keeping pace.<\/p>\n

Crafts intends to create a public safety command center that balances the needs and wants of the community with the necessary safety measures required of a busy and diverse college campus. She wants the latest technology partnered with staff trained in everything from handling aggression to warning the community of an impending a tornado.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want the community to know I\u2019m interested and mean business, but I\u2019m human too. It won\u2019t happen tomorrow, but it will happen,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

With this in mind, Crafts will schedule \u201cmeet and greet\u201d sessions throughout the campuses and looks forward to hearing what is on the minds of faculty, staff, and students.<\/p>\n

In the Beginning<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Scituate native said she was drawn to criminal justice when she was fairly young.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was naturally curious and a problem solver,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was a natural progression for me to want to be a detective.\u201d<\/p>\n

She received sage advice early on from her parents. Advice that became her foundation as a professional.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mom was a teacher and taught me to see the good in everyone. My dad was the one who taught me to look beyond the people who didn\u2019t believe in me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Crafts believed in herself and went headlong into a male dominated field. She honed her policing skills by cycling through co-ops with the John Hancock security team and later the Northeastern Police, which, she said, was a training ground for police chiefs. To date, 14 of the individuals she worked with have gone on to become municipal or campus police chiefs.<\/p>\n

Crafts followed one of her mentors to Bentley University where she was tasked with integrating technology into the campus\u2019s public safety department. A few years in, she realized she needed investigative experience. So, for a time she worked as an internal investigator for Fidelity Investments. Though her heart was in public service, she said she gained valuable wisdom working in a for-profit business environment. Eventually she returned to Bentley University where as part of her duties as lieutenant she \u201ccreated and deployed a community policing team.\u201d<\/p>\n

During her years at Bentley Crafts rose from dispatcher to lieutenant. And, along the way learned she was adept at relationship building with a smile. During this time, she married and had two sons who are now teens. As a mom, a wife, and a daughter, Crafts said, she recognizes she has the ability to carry a soft voice into a tense situation if necessary.<\/p>\n

After introducing initiatives as benign as ice cream socials and as intense as sexual assault training, Crafts left for Simmons College in Boston where she served as second in command. Her team designed and created a comprehensive public safety plan. In addition, she began training with FEMA on large-scale crisis response. She also created a 40-hour course to train campus officers in crime prevention and campus policing. Officers throughout the state have completed that course. Crafts was honored with two professional awards for the course design.<\/p>\n

Her brand of policing was noticed and when Massachusetts Bay Community College was looking for an interim manager of public safety, they recruited Crafts. Eventually she became MassBay\u2019s deputy director of public safety.<\/p>\n

Her resume expanded still, when she became police chief of Fisher College in Boston\u2019s Back Bay. Because of its close proximity to the Boston Common, Fisher is an important partner in the planning of the July 4th celebration on the Esplanade. By extension, Crafts said, she gained \u201ca tremendous amount of knowledge for a large scale event and potential associated threats.\u201d<\/p>\n

Commitment to Safety<\/strong><\/p>\n

While her titles have changed with the campuses, Crafts said her commitment to campus safety has grown.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember reading the job description for this position and thinking it I were selected it would be the best job ever,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was as if it was written for me. I worked my way through every position in a police department. I\u2019ve worked really hard to get here. I don\u2019t take my position lightly.\u201d<\/p>\n

For additional information, Crafts can be contacted directly at dcrafts@necc.mass.edu<\/a><\/p>\n

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