Rogers Named Officer Of The Year

Oskaloosa Police Officer Austin Rogers, seen here working a recent shift, calls in the plate of a vehicle he just stopped.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – With less than two years on the job, Oskaloosa Police Officer Austin Rogers is chosen as Officer of the Year.

Rogers started out in college seeking a degree in physical therapy but he quickly changed his mind after the first year.

Rogers had met a person at the gym who was in the criminal justice program, which caught Rogers’ attention. “It sounded neat, something you could help people. That was my original plan with physical therapy… was to help people.”

After exploring the possibility of a career in law enforcement, Rogers attended Indians Hills criminal justice program, and ultimately finished a 4 year degree at Buena Vista University.

In March, Rogers will have been a patrol officer with the Oskaloosa Police Department for two years, but he served as the Community Resource Officer beginning in September of 2014 before becoming a patrol officer in March of 2015.

Becoming an officer of the year in such a short time is uncommon and Rogers credits the training he received from his field training officers, “I was pretty lucky to have a couple of good officers such as Ben Johnston… He helped me extensively. Also Blaine Shutts, who is no longer with us.”

Shutts is now part of the Altoona Police Department.

“Both of those officers helped me out to get my own way of policing, and from there I’ve grown,” says Rogers.

Oskaloosa Police Officer Austin Rogers stands near the plaque that lists past officer of the year winners.

Rogers’ focus remains on helping people, “I go into each call with the same mindset of how can I help this person.”

“This is something I love doing, helping people out,” added Rogers.

“Austin was a great addition to our department”, said Oskaloosa Police Chief, Jake McGee.

McGee spoke about Rogers being recognized early in his career. “That doesn’t happen very often where, a guy that has less than two years, gets nominated.”

“[When] he started as a CSO, we knew right then he was going to be outstanding,” said McGee.

The nominating process includes being recommended by the 5 lieutenants of the PD. “They look for somebody that goes above and beyond their normal duties in their job description. Austin does that on a routine basis,” explained McGee.

“Austin was a unanimous choice”, said McGee. “He’s an outstanding young man. He’s very community minded. He has a passion for his job, and he just does a great job. He’s years ahead.”

“We’re all very proud of Austin and feel he is very deserving of the award,” said McGee.

Rogers recalls a recent memory of an elderly woman who was attempting to scrape her windshield during a light freezing rain event, “and just wasn’t having any luck at all.”

“I pulled over and helped her scrape her window because she was unable to,” recalls Rogers. “It’s the little things like that that make me love this job even more.”

There is a memory for Rogers that solidifies why he is in the right career. Rogers, who now has two kids of his own, remembers an incident that took place before he was married.

He recalled an accident in which “a small child had been hit by a truck.” Rogers says that memory helped him to appreciate what police work is all about. “We’re going out and helping people such as that young child. Just helping him and knowing that after it was all done, he was OK. It was a great feeling.”

Rogers’ career has begun during a time when many may have ill feelings towards those in law enforcement, but Rogers feels as though he has made the right decision to become a police officer.

“Sometimes going to work, especially after the shootings that have happened in Des Moines, was that nerve wracking? Yes.”

“The next time coming on shift, it was somewhat hard leaving my family just knowing the fact that two officers had just lost their lives doing the work that we do. That was very hard. However, you’ve got to strap your boots on. You’ve got to put your belt back on. You are here for the people. You are here for the community and that’s what I live for,” says Rogers.

“My family helps me out a lot,” says Rogers of the stress of the job. “Spending time with my family and doing the things that I love outside of work helps me out.”

Rogers said that the shootings of the two police officers in Des Moines didn’t change the way he polices the community. “They taught us this in the academy, that you should always have your head on a swivel. I try to stay aware of my surroundings.”

“This is a job where you are learning every day,” says Rogers. “Today is a new day… That’s why I love this job. It’s ever changing.”