Police commanders and officers honored for achievements

University police commissioning
Jason Koski/Cornell Marketing Group
Sgt. Michael Scott, left, Sgt. Scott Grantz ’99, Cornell Chief of Police Kathy Zoner, Lt. Richard Gourley, Lt. Anthony Bellamy and Officer Jodi Condzella at the Cornell University Police Department officer commissioning and swearing-in ceremony, Oct. 12.

Two sergeants were promoted to the rank of lieutenant, three officers to sergeant and one officer was welcomed back to the Cornell University Police Department (CUPD) at the officer commissioning and swearing-in ceremony, Oct. 12 in the Statler Ballroom.

Receiving their commissions as lieutenant were Richard Gourley and Anthony Bellamy. Scott Grantz ’99, Eric Stickel and Michael Scott were promoted to the rank of sergeant. And Jodi (Bizari) Condzella, who served with CUPD from 2007 to 2014 before marrying and leaving the area, was sworn in after rejoining the department.

Among other duties, a lieutenant in Cornell’s police force ensures the “consistent, seamless delivery of police services to the community,” setting the bar for “professionalism in both action and appearance,” said Cornell Chief of Police Kathy Zoner, who led the commissioning ceremony. Lieutenants instill in their officers “the concepts of the greater good, servanthood and neighborhood” and the values of “truth, respect, excellence, teamwork and integrity,” she said.

Gourley joined CUPD in 1988, was promoted to patrol officer in 1990 and to sergeant in 1997. He has taken college courses in criminal justice and computer science and is a graduate of the Southern Tier Law Enforcement Academy. From 1997 to 2002, he served on the road patrol, then became special projects manager, and in 2010 became administrative sergeant, managing the force’s fleet and facility.

Before joining CUPD in 2004, Bellamy was a career firefighter and part-time police officer for Dutchess County, New York; a Dutchess County deputy sheriff; and a New York state officer of mental hygiene. He holds a masters degree from Marist College. Bellamy worked in CUPD’s investigations unit from 2007 to 2009, was promoted to patrol sergeant in 2010, and became the sergeant of major investigations in 2013.

A sergeant “is not only responsible for him- or herself, but also for a team of others,” Zoner said. “As the first and most direct level of leadership, a sergeant is responsible for positive direction, mentorship and guidance to our patrol officers.”

Grantz received his bachelors degree in government from the College of Arts and Sciences and graduated from the Southern Tier Law Enforcement Academy in 2002, joining CUPD shortly thereafter. He was commissioned as a sergeant in 2006. In 2008, he joined Cornell’s Office of the Judicial Administrator. Grantz returned to CUPD as patrol officer in 2012, exercising leadership skills, initiative and forward thinking, according to Zoner.

Stickel, who became a CUPD patrol officer in 2008, grew up in Ithaca and earned two bachelor’s degrees at Lycoming College – one in criminal justice and one in legal studies and sociology. Stickel is the CUP drug recognition evaluator, trained to recognize impairment in drivers under the influence of drugs other than, or in addition to, alcohol.

Scott joined CUPD in 2012 as a patrol officer. He is known for his leadership and having the highest scores of his class in academics and firearms marksmanship at the Southern Tier Law Enforcement Academy. He earned a bachelors degree in business management at Liberty University.

Condzella married then-fellow CUPD officer Tom Condzella in 2014; they left the area but returned a year later. Jodi Condzella rejoined CUP in 2015; Tom now serves at the Ithaca Police Department.

Jodi Condzella holds an associate degree from Monroe Community College and a bachelors from SUNY Brockport, both in criminal justice, and is a graduate of the Onondaga Law Enforcement Academy.

“Officer Condzella, we welcome you back to our agency, and again to our community,” Zoner said.

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John Carberry