A new face in law enforcement has been patrolling UW-Platteville this semester. Scott Marquardt became the director of campus police January 5, after Laurel Skrede retired as director.

Marquardt’s favorite part of the job is the people he works for and works with.

“From students to staff, everyone has been so supportive of me and very helpful as I learn this position,” Marquardt said. “It is an honor to come to work every day and work with such great people.”

Wherever there is good in his job, there are also bad. He finds it unfortunate when he has to deal with people who did something wrong and blame the police instead of taking responsibility for their own actions.

“I don’t mind respectful disagreements at all, as there can always be another side to a situation,” Marquardt said. “But verbally berating the officers and me is not the best way to get your point across. I am especially irritated when the venom we’re subjected to is because of a $10 parking citation.”

Marquardt grew up in a police family where his father and uncle were both police officers. His hometown had a Law Enforcement Post, a group that’s associated with the Boy Scouts of America, where he was able to learn more about being a police officer. After graduating from UW-P with a criminal justice major, he attended the Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton for his police academy training.

On May 29, 1992, Marquardt became an officer with the City of Platteville and continued to be a police officer for the city until January 2, 2009. While there have been a lot of memories that Marquardt has encountered as a police officer, his most memorable moment came in 2004 when he was assigned to travel with a U.S. Secret Service Agent during President George W. Bush’s trip through Grant County.

“It was an experience I will never forget and it was a tremendous honor to serve a small role on a national event that day,” Marquardt said.

Marquardt hopes to continue the policing tradition here at UW-P.

“I will continue to assess the needs of the campus and will do everything I can to make this the safest learning and working environment possible,” Marquardt said.

Like Marquardt, Regina Ihm, a UW-P police officer, hopes that the UW-P police continue to move ahead. She said that she does enjoy working with Marquardt.

Other officers share the same warm feelings toward Marquardt, that he is a great boss to work with.

“His education and experience make him a perfect fit as chief of police at UW-P,” Jason Williams, police officer for UW-P, said. “He is fair, always willing to listen and supports his staff one-hundred percent. I hope to see our department grow as our student body continues to grow.”