Central Oregon Community College
Directory
Student Login
Employee Login

This is the searchbox for the COCC website

Student Stories

Kyla AccardoKyla Accardo

Criminal Justice graduate, Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer degree
Community Service Officer, City of Bend Police Department

For Kyla Accardo, a day at the office is never the same. She just knows she'll be out in the community, working with fellow officers and contacting citizens on varied assignments — things like crime scene investigation support, directing traffic, responding to ordinance violations, animal complaints, and more. 

"You never know what is going to happen," says the Bend Police Department community service officer. "We're out in the community, helping solve problems. I look forward to going to work each day and seeing my coworkers, while being able to meet new people in the community."   

A career in law enforcement was always on Accardo's radar. "When I was looking for a college, I knew I wanted to be close to home to begin with. COCC was the perfect fit. I started with the 'Intro to Criminology' class and instantly knew that I was in the right place." 

Accardo found a program that provided many different law enforcement backgrounds and areas of expertise — which brought incredible breadth to her studies. "It is clear that the professors care about the students and want to share their knowledge," she adds. "The classes at COCC were very informative and helped me gain insight into the criminal justice realm. I am thankful I started my college career at COCC." 

Student Success StoryCeaira Casselman

Criminal Justice graduate, Associate of Applied Science
Community Service Officer, City of Redmond Police Department

One class experience and Ceaira Casselman was hooked. Although she was originally taking Criminal Justice coursework for elective credits under a different degree at COCC, Casselman found something that day that resonated and inspired her to switch her major. 

"I loved everything about it, from case law to learning about the way criminals think," she shares. "The educational experience was amazing. The smaller class environment made it such a great learning experience where I felt the teachers took time to get to know you, which later on helped with success in their classes." 

After receiving her degree, Casselman served as a 911-public safety dispatcher before being hired by the Redmond Police Department to be a community service officer. These officers perform various law enforcement responsibilities that don't require carrying a firearm or having arrest authority, but involve many specialized functions: investigating theft and fraud, conducting foot and vehicle patrols, testifying in court, processing evidence, enforcing motor vehicle regulations, animal control, and being a community liaison, among other assignments. 

"I find my career super rewarding when I have a good outcome from a hard case," she adds. "All the teamwork and personal effort that goes into those extremely hard cases makes this career so rewarding to me."