Public Safety Director’s life is a balancing act

Ken Vance wears many hats – police officer, community leader, family man and poet. Something most people are probably not aware of is that he graduated from Georgia College & State University in 1978, with a degree in creative writing.

“My writing got me a little notoriety,” said Vance. “At that time, I was the first person [in Milledgeville] to go to a writing program since Flannery O’Connor. That was a big deal. I had a couple of readings that were very well attended, and it was pretty amazing. I wrote poetry. I guess that’s how I got known a little bit. I was in the paper some back then. There were articles in the Atlanta paper about the poet with a gun and all that marketing stuff. I really didn’t like that kind of thing, but it sold newspapers, I guess. I’ve been published three or four times. It’s a nice thing. You don’t make any money being a poet, but I enjoyed it. It’s something I’ll always do. It’s just a way to come to terms with things.”

Instead of pursuing a career in writing, he became interested in law enforcement.

“I had been one of 25 people selected from the state of Georgia to get this intense year-round law-enforcement training,” he said. “It was a federal program at the University of Georgia. I was very fortunate to get that. Actually, I got into it to try to pay for my school. I ended up being in law enforcement ever since. I’ve been here as the director since April Fool’s Day of 1985. I first joined Public Safety three years prior to that in 1982.”

Vance said the personal aspect of the job is what he enjoys most about being Public Safety Director.

“I like the people,” he said. “It’s a people job. I wear a badge, but it’s not all about good guys and bad guys. Most people you run across are good people. A lot of people make mistakes. I don’t see a halo over many heads. I deal with young people, very bright young people. That’s what makes it new every day, dealing with young folks and faculty and staff.”

Vance devotes time to help ensure that all police officers in the state are performing their duties at a high level of competency.

“I’ve been on the Peace Officers Standards and Training Council since 1994,”said Vance. “We police the police. All law enforcement in Georgia comes under the POST Act. I was just named vice chairman about two weeks ago and I’m very proud of that.”

His co-workers at Public Safety admire Vance’s dedication as director and his expertise in the field of law enforcement.

“It is really a pleasure to work with Ken,” said Cindy Potts, administrative assistant at public safety. “He tells you what he expects of you and lets you do your job. He is not always looking over your shoulder micro-managing you, but if you don’t do your job he will definitely let you know. I like his sense of humor, his honesty, his work ethics and his personal involvement with each person who works here in this department. Ken is dedicated to this department. What most people don’t know is that Ken is out patrolling late at night, just checking out the campus when no one knows he is around. He is also in his office late at night trying to take care of business that sometimes can’t be done during the day, due to all the other things he has to do. He gets calls during the night at home. This is a 24-hour, seven-day a week job. He puts in more hours than anyone knows behind the scenes.”

“Ken is intelligent, personable and dedicated to the university and our community,” said Ed Robinson, coordinator of environmental health and occupational safety at the department of public safety. “Ken is an expert in his chosen field of law enforcement. He has served at every level of law enforcement – police officer, deputy sheriff, state patrolman and police chief. He is truly interested in higher standards of training and education for law enforcement personnel.”

In addition to safeguarding our campus, Vance moonlights as a Milledgeville city councilman. He began his career in politics 22 years ago.

“I taught school during the day as an English teacher at Baldwin High School, and from midnight to eight every night I was a deputy sheriff for Baldwin County,” Vance said. “Some people came to me and asked if I would be interested in running for city council. I ran against an incumbent, a very controversial lady. There were six of us who ran, and I got the most votes. I got a runoff with her and won the election.”

He was drawn to public service at an early age by the turmoil of the 1960s and by hearing some of the great speakers of the time.

“I was a pretty idealistic person early on,” he said. “I used to read a lot of philosophy, political science, religion and those kinds of things. I was just a little country boy from south Georgia who came to town. I was raised in south Georgia in a very small community. I was always interested in powerful speakers. I came through in a time when integration started. That and the Vietnam War stuff all kind of ran into each other. I came out of the period of integration in the south into the anti-war protest of the early 1970s. I guess that kind of thing gets in you, and you think maybe you can make a difference. I was very naive about the political process back then and how I won. I didn’t ask for any money. I just went around and asked for people to vote for me. I thought I had a very good campaign slogan – “Fresh Common Sense.” I did my own writing for articles in the newspapers, my little advertisements and radio spots. People got used to hearing me and liking what I read, and it just kind of mushroomed. You get in to make a difference. Whether you do is somebody else’s call.”

Vance spoke of things that are not often associated with politicians – honesty and admitting mistakes.

“I don’t take myself that seriously,” said Vance. “I do the best I can. Have I made mistakes? You’re darn right. When you do something wrong, people won’t be near as hard on you if you say ‘look, I screwed up. I made a mistake. You have a right to get mad at me.’”

He said his time in politics may be ending when his current term as councilman expires.

“Either I’ll run for something different, or I’ll let somebody else do this,” he said. “I say that now and I might have to eat those words. I might run again, but I don’t think I’m going to. I think a lot of the reason I’m saying this is because it’s so frustrating right now. If everything was rosy on the city council I would probably have a different answer. All the controversy wears on you after awhile. It just grinds on you. I take it so seriously. Everything we do locally should be about what is best for this community, pure and simple.”

Those who know him see him as a dedicated and tireless force at GC&SU and in the community.

“He does the best he can with as much as he has to do here,” said Potts. “Until I moved up to my position, I didn’t realize just how much he has to do and how many people he has to deal with: faculty, staff, students, the outside public. He tries to make everyone happy, but sometimes he needs to learn to say no. This man has way too much stuff on his plate and not enough time to get everything done.”

“I have known Ken for over 20 years and know him to be a gentleman of high ideals and sterling character,” said Robinson. “He is a dedicated and faithful family man, married to the former Carole Grant of Milledgeville. They have a daughter, Emily, and a son, John Austin. The Vance family is active in the First United Methodist Church, where Ken teaches a Sunday school class and has held various church offices including Trustee. Ken is a tireless community worker in Milledgeville where he is active in many endeavors.”

Vance’s life may seem like a juggling act with family and other community responsibilities added in.

“You compartmentalize time,” said Vance. “It used to be hard for me to do, but now I’m used to it. I still write all the time just for myself. That’s the way I deal with things and I enjoy it. I really like mountain biking. That’s what I do in my spare time. I wreck a lot, but I really like it. You have a wreck, you get yourself dirty and pick yourself up and say you’re learning. I got into this mountain biking because of my son. He’s pretty good at it. I guess that’s why I’m coaching baseball, too, and teaching my daughter how to drive. That’s an experience. I’m not trying to be philosophical here, but life’s about getting experience. If you get the same experience every day, you’re dull. Get different experiences. Try new things.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 4 2003. Filed under Other. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry