Partnership opens new doors, internship program

When NMSU graduates cross the stage at commencement, the bonds to campus don’t end. The ties often extend across the country. 

Jesse Guardiola ’95, who consistently visited the NMSU campus and successfully recruited numerous students during his 26-year career with the Tulsa Police Department, helped create a partnership between the Department of Criminal Justice and TPD.  

The collaboration now boasts a paid student internship program that offers students hands-on law enforcement experience while earning the final 15 credit hours needed for their bachelor’s degrees in criminal justice.

“Being in the criminal justice program and working for the agency gives students the ability to undergo training and receive employment upon graduation, supporting a student’s education costs as a result,” says Marija Dimitrijevic ’06, criminal justice college associate professor and coordinator of the partnership.

TPD recruitment officers David Medrano ’17 and Troy Honeycutt ’17, whom Guardiola recruited, spent a week on campus during the spring and fall 2024 semesters speaking with students about the program and career opportunities.

“The reason I wanted to get into recruiting is for opportunities like this,” Honeycutt says. “I wanted to go back to my hometown and recruit fellow Aggies and give them the opportunities that were given to me. At first, Tulsa wasn’t on my radar as a college student, but it has been wonderful for me and my family.”

For Medrano, a first-generation college student, the ability to connect with students of similar backgrounds is empowering.

“I’m the representation of that light at the end of the tunnel,” Medrano says. “When a first-generation college student sees me and learns my story, they’re able to see themselves accomplishing the same things. Sometimes that’s all we need is a visual representation of what’s out there for us.”

A criminal justice master’s degree graduate, Wyatt Greene ’22 ’24, who also spent four years entertaining Aggie fans as NMSU mascot Pistol Pete, joined the TPD’s May 2024 Academy. 

“I’m having to leave Pete behind, but I’m very excited to go to Tulsa and be part of the academy,” Greene says. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity NMSU and the TPD have provided me.”