Bellevue police officer, Omaha school administrator to receive awards for de-escalating violence | #hacking | #aihp

A Bellevue police officer and an Omaha Burke High School administrator will receive national awards for their efforts in helping to protect others from violence.

School Resource Officer Jonathan Hobbs and Dean of Students Nathan Tietz will receive the National Award of Valor from the National Association of School Resource Officers at the National School Safety Conference in Indianapolis on June 30.

Hobbs will be honored for de-escalating a May 4, 2022, incident in which a 13-year-old girl threatened her grandparents with an ax at a Bellevue residence. Tietz will be honored for stopping a student who police and the Omaha Public Schools said injured two students with a knife at Burke High School on Jan. 4.

The incident involving Hobbs began when Bellevue police officers responded to a report of a person who was armed with a weapon at a residence near Offutt Air Force Base, according to a letter written by by Lt. Mike Pettit to Police Chief Ken Clary. While en route, Pettit wrote, officers were informed that the armed person was a 13-year-old girl.

Hobbs, who was off-duty at the time, overheard that information and believed that due to the girl’s age, she was likely a student at one of the schools he serves. Hobbs recognized the student’s name and informed the responding officers he had a rapport with her.

Pettit wrote Hobbs took initiative and went to the residence. Hobbs talked with the student and ultimately persuaded the girl, who had been holding the ax a few feet from two family members, to drop it.

“I felt confident that I could de-escalate the situation,” Hobbs told The World-Herald.

Hobbs’ actions are just one example of the work he puts into building relationships with students, Bellevue Police Sgt. Dontrell Ducker said.

“If anyone knows Hobbs, they know he makes it a point to make contact with the students on a daily basis,” Ducker said, adding that Hobbs eats lunch with students of the month, hands out meals and teaches students about the law enforcement profession. “He goes above and beyond. He takes ownership of the schools that he’s involved with.”

Hobbs, who has been a Bellevue police officer since December 2020 and a school resource officer since January 2021, was surprised by his selection to receive the award.

“It was a shock to me,” he said. “I was just doing my job.”

Tietz helped break up a hallway fight at Burke, which is near 120th Street and West Dodge Road. A cellphone video showed a school resource officer and another faculty member pulling two students who were fighting the student who had a knife. When the latter student attempted to chase after one of the students, Tietz intercepted and helped restrain him.

In a letter recommending that Tietz be recognized for public service, Omaha Police Lt. Charles Ott said Tietz narrowly missed being stabbed in the face and body.

“His willingness to go above and beyond his job description potentially prevented serious injuries and possibly lives (being lost),” Ott wrote.

In a statement shared by OPS spokeswoman Bridget Blevins, the district commended Tietz’s actions.

“Student safety is a top priority for Omaha Public Schools, and Mr. Tietz’s quick actions alongside our law enforcement partners reflect that,” the district said.

Tietz has been with OPS since 2008. Before he came to Burke, he was a social studies studies teacher at Monroe Middle School and Lewis and Clark Middle School.