ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. – Mario Hodge has been selected as the first-ever Chief of Police for Central Alabama Community College (CACC).
The president of CACC, Jeff Lynn, made the announcement in a press release on Thursday, May 26. Hodge will begin his duties next Wednesday, June 1, and will oversee the security for all four CACC campuses.
“I decided to start a Police department because it is a priority for me,” said Lynn. “My belief is that safety is my number one responsibility for our students, faculty, and staff.”
The news comes just days after yet another mass shooting took place in the U.S. On Monday, 19 children and two teachers were tragically killed at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
“I want to provide the very best academic, workforce, and adult education programs, but we need to focus on campus safety in today’s world,” Lynn remarked. “I feel so strongly about this department that Chief Hodge will report directly to me.”
Mario Hodge has over 25 years of experience in law enforcement with the last 21 years as a member of the Alexander City Police Department. He has served as captain for nine years and as the lead administrator for the detective/administration command division since last year.
“I see this as a great opportunity for the college and myself,” Hodge said. “I’ve always aspired to be a chief, and I have supervised and managed every department within the Alex City Police Department. I’m excited to be tasked with building this department at CACC from the ground up. I think it’s very important to have a department that is dedicated to the college full-time so people can get to know and become familiar with our officers.”
Hodge was the 2002 Police Officer of the Year for Alexander City and recently graduated in 2019 from the FBI National Academy.
“For us to do this, we needed to locate a great first Chief of Police who would help us build our police department with our vision, goals, and objectives that are truly meaningful for the future of CACC,” expressed Lynn. “I believe with our interview team that we found that person in Mario Hodge.”
