Our mission is to provide a safe and secure campus for our community. We believe that our role does not end there. We feel strongly that our community needs both to be safe and feel safe. The perception of safety contributes to the overall college experience, facilitates teaching and learning, and supports the mission of Germanna Community College to educate the next leaders of the Commonwealth and our nation.
We strive to enforce the law as well as college rules and regulations in a manner that supports the missions of both the Police Department and Germanna Community College whenever and wherever possible. The Germanna Community College Police Department believes the most effective way to achieve these goals is through collaboration with our community.
By embracing a proactive community policing/customer service based philosophy, we will be able to create a partnership with our campus constituents, as well as our neighbors. A close community partnership is the best way to prevent crime and enhance safety. We will preserve public safety and foster a better quality of life by providing the services necessary to accomplish this mission and make the college a better place to work, visit and learn.
Department Values
We are guided by the highest ethical standards. As members of the law enforcement and public safety community, our officers have a special duty to the college community to provide the highest quality of personalized services to students, faculty, staff and visitors of the college. Members of this department will believe in and respect the dignity of all people and respect individual and constitutional rights in fulfilling our mission. Members of this department will follow the various procedure manual rules and procedures and our behavior will be guided by these core values:
- Enforce laws/policies and serve our community with respect and fairness.
- Hold ourselves to the highest standard of integrity and honesty; always be truthful in matters associated with department responsibilities.
- Compliance with laws and department rules comply with laws of the United States and of any state or local jurisdiction, as well as departmental rules of conduct, including adherence to lawful orders from any higher authority within the Department.
- Value the diversity that exists among our fellow employees and citizens and not discriminate on the basis of personal characteristics.
- Customer satisfaction work within our community, sharing responsibility for making it safer and improving the quality of life.
- Teamwork cooperatively with fellow employees demonstrating the principles of good teamwork through on and off duty behavior that is courteous, positive and supportive of departmental goals.
- Preserve the trust of the community we are sworn to serve and never abuse the authority conferred upon us.
- Utilize all Departmental resources efficiently, appropriately and respectfully.
- Treat the official business of the Department as confidential and respect the appropriate levels of privacy with respect to that information.
- Refrain from conduct which reflects unfavorably on the Germanna Community College Police Department.
Department Vision
Our vision is to provide the best possible police and security services to our college community by:
- Establishing and maintaining relationships within our community for the purpose of communication and problem solving.
- Utilize technology, intelligence and information sharing to enhance safety.
- Create a safe and prospering environment through education, prevention and enforcement efforts.
- Continue to improve and enhance services to the college community through training, cost-efficient and responsible use of resources, and resource sharing within the law enforcement community.
- Continually measure the organization against best practices within the college and law enforcement community, always seeking improvement and continued learning.
- Gain and maintain the trust and confidence of all members of the college community while striving to improve the quality of life for them.
- Constantly improve and enhance the image of the Germanna Community College Police Department through our service, performance, appearance, conduct and reputation.
Officer Complaints/Compliments
The Germanna Community College Police Department values the feedback it receives from the community and is dedicated to providing the best law enforcement and public safety services possible to all members of our community. Our employees are carefully selected and given the best training. Information provided by community members like you helps us with this mission.
The Complaint Process
We formally investigate allegations and inquiries for these reasons
- To protect citizens from actual misconduct by an employee;
- To protect the department and those employees who conduct themselves appropriately;
- To identify policies and procedures that may need review or change, and to find ways to improve the quality of our service to the community.
If you choose to make a complaint, we will follow a formal process to ensure that your complaint is thoroughly investigated. If you desire to make a formal complaint either complete the below online form or you may click here for a printable version and mail it to
Germanna Community College Police Department
Attn: Chief Craig Branch
2130 Germanna Hwy P.O. Box 1430
Locust Grove, Virginia 22508
or drop it off in a sealed envelope addressed to Chief Craig Branch at any of our college police office locations.
The assigned supervisor or internal affairs investigator will conduct a thorough investigation. They will interview the employee involved and any witnesses. The investigating supervisor or internal affairs investigator may contact you for additional details or to clarify the information you have already provided. Normally, the investigation will be completed within 30 days of the time we receive the complaint. If not, you will be notified. The employee’s supervisors will make a decision about the complaint based on the facts available. The decision will be one of four findings:
- Substantiated – The employee acted improperly.
- Not Substantiated – The complaint can be neither proved nor disproved.
- Unfounded – The available evidence does not support the complaint.
- Justified – The officer’s actions were proper.
If an allegation is sustained, appropriate corrective action will be taken. The action may involve retraining, counseling, verbal or written reprimand, suspension from duty, or termination. Finding(s) from the investigation can be released to the complainant if requested. However, in accordance with the law and out of respect for employees’ privacy, we do not release what specific discipline was imposed on the employee.
Complaint
If you have had contact with a Germanna Community College Police Department employee and need to file a complaint, please provide us with information so we can investigate the situation.
Compliment
If you have had contact with a Germanna Community College Police Department employee and want to give a compliment, please provide us with information so we can acknowledge this achievement.