News

Utah Officer of the Year

Courtesy of Mike Milne

Deputy Director
Utah Council for Crime Prevention

Officer Stan Penrod – Syracuse Police Department

        DARE Officer of the Year

Officer Penrod is the most recognized and appreciated officer of the Syracuse Police Dept.  It would be easy to see why.  But perhaps the biggest reason for the respect he gets from the Syracuse community is the fact that he goes to great lengths to make a personal bond with each of his students. 

As a full time and year-round DARE Officer, Officer Penrod organizes Monster Truck and K-9 demonstrations; infuses his lessons with detectives and patrol officers. 

He also garnered Support for a DARE Video that featured many famous Utahns, including Bronco Mendenhall and Kyle Whittingham, and Larry Miller produced the video.

Officer Penrod coaches a little league football team when he is not teaching, further proof of his commitment to the community. Of particular note is that when one of his sixth grade students was diagnosed with cancer, Officer Penrod shaved his head when her hair fell out.  

From a charter school teacher,  “Last year, our sixth grade students were very concerned with “being cool” rather than necessarily making good choices.  Officer Penrod inspired our students to adjust those attitudes.”   Another charter school teacher said,  “I was unsure about the functionality of the DARE program.  After meeting him, I am now a strong believer in the DARE program.”  

Officer Penrod wrote (before he started the two-week training)  “I requested this assignment because I could not come up with any better way to have a direct influence on the youth of my community.  This is a great chance for me to learn about the different environments these children come from.  I expect to gain information as well as experience things that I will be able to apply toward the rest of my career.”

© 2012 D.A.R.E. America. All Rights Reserved. D.A.R.E. and the D.A.R.E. logo are trademarks of D.A.R.E. America.
PO Box 512090 Los Angeles, CA 90051

Read our Privacy Guidelines.
Check out Content Rating.