[Faculty Spotlight: Meet Richard Schak by Michael Melero. Elizabeth did the editing. And Edward did the final proofreading for typos. (Richard has approved.)]
Full-time Faculty Spotlight: Meet Richard Schak
An Interview with the Founder of NLU’s Criminal Justice Major
by Michael D. Melero
During my senior year in high school, I was bored in my room and watched an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, which inspired me to become a police officer one day. To achieve my aim to pursue a profession in law enforcement, I enrolled myself in many criminal justice classes from my junior year of high school through my sophomore year of college. Despite the fact that I changed my major from Criminal Justice to Communication and Media at the end of my sophomore year at NLU, I want to pursue a profession in criminal justice and law.
Are you interested in playing a role in ensuring the safety of your community members? If yes, you may want to consider pursuing a career in law enforcement. Becoming a police officer is one way to help those in need. Richard Schak, the founder of NLU's B.A. in Criminal Justice program, was a great pleasure to speak with about the world of law enforcement.
Although Richard now directs the Criminal Justice department in NLU’s Undergraduate College, he served many years as a sergeant with the Chicago Police Department. He vowed to serve the community and protect the lives, rights, and property of all Chicagoans for thirty years! Impressive! He received a significant deal of recognition from the Chicago Police Department for his excellent public speaking skills and strong leadership.
I put together a list of questions for Richard Schak, and we had a great conversation!
How did you keep your work-life balance while working for the Chicago Police Department?
One of the problems that you have with being a police officer is that you've got to learn not to bring your work home with you. When I first became a police officer, I had domestic disturbances. I worked in the Cabrini Green projects area as well as Rush Street. I also worked in Old Town on Wells Street. I worked on Michigan Avenue. I was in the 18th District, which is now called the Near North District. It was the best district in the city to work in, with all the variety. So, I saw poverty, and I saw wealth, but I didn't see a lot of terrible things other than domestic disputes.
Some police officers turn to alcohol or to coke. Some police officers that are married turn to womanizing. Some police officers, unfortunately, turned to suicide. We've seen that, especially in the last few years. But the whole idea was that you've got to keep life in perspective, “That's there, and this is here.” That's not easy to do.
While working in law enforcement, did you experience any anxiety? If so, how do you handle that?
I was anxious about going on domestic cases. Especially after I was slashed during a domestic dispute. I have a scar on my arm, right on my bicep. After that incident, I was more anxious about heading to those cases.
I was also anxious about anything involving a shotgun. Because a person can shoot a shotgun just in your direction, you can get hurt. I remember there was a guy held up in the basement, and we had to try to get him out, and he had a shotgun. Luckily, we got him out of there. In 1999, I was actually shot in the chest with a handgun. To me, that was very routine. Isn't that weird? That's life. That's what police do.
During your time working at the Chicago Police Department, what kinds of responsibilities did you have?
Originally, I was a patrol officer, so my responsibility was to patrol my post, respond to calls, and be proactive. Meaning if I saw something that looked like it was inappropriate or suspicious, I took action. And the police department in those days, especially in the late 60s and early 70s, policing techniques were proactive, but crime fighting was reactive.
It’s hard to believe now, but when people got Social Security checks and government checks, they were paper checks that came in the mail. So, people would steal the mail. To avoid this, everybody had their checks sent to the local currency exchange, where they would cash their checks. What would happen is they go at 11 in the morning to pick up their money. Well, the robbers knew when check day was, so they would loiter around the currency exchange. So, police at the time used to patrol and try to catch the robbers. And in those days policing, in general, was not designed; it was reactive.
What are some common misconceptions regarding law enforcement officers?
Well, it depends on where we are in society right now. Currently, we're in a situation where some people think that the police are the enemy. But that’s not the case. Maybe we should take some of the police budget and put it into mental health programs and other city departments that take away some of the jobs that police do that aren't really police functions.
A good example of that is community policing. If there was an abandoned building, a police officer could sit there and make out paperwork and fast-track the building for board-up. The building would then be set for demolition. Get some more city workers out there that do that.
In your role at National Louis University, what knowledge do you hope your students will take with them after they graduate?
The biggest thing that I want a student to learn is fairness. We've had diversity, equity, and inclusion in this program since I started it eleven years ago. It's not a new concept for people in Criminal Justice. You have to strive to be fair.
My career as a detective, my career as a police officer, my career as a sergeant, people who work for me, and people in the public knew me as being fair. If you can graduate from this program having learned how to be a good citizen, have decent ethics, understand diversity and inclusion, and how to work multiculturally, then you're going to be successful in anything you do.
Since you've achieved so much in the Chicago Police Department and at National Louis University, what's your proudest accomplishment? And why?
I have several proud moments. I’m proud every time one of my nine children graduates from college and enters their career. One of my daughters actually got her master's degree at NLU in community psychology, and she was working as a rape crisis counselor.
But also, my proudest moments are seeing my students be successful. Especially on graduation day. I've got students that I had 25 years ago that still text me and tell me what's going on in their life. They used to call me Sarge.
How would you like to be remembered?
What I want to be remembered as is a good father and a fair person. That's it.
I do a lot of things. I'm on the Board of Governors at Shriners Hospital for Children. You could take your children there for orthopedic work or cleft palate or things like that, and it's totally free of charge. I’m very proud of being associated with Shriners Hospital for Children.
So, I'll be remembered for stuff like that, philanthropy, and fairness. And I'm proud of the team that I have to work here with at NLU to educate.
Michael D. Melero is a junior, majoring in Communication and Media.
Credits
Writer: Michael D. Melero
Editor: Elizabeth Schaefer
Proofreader: Edward Gomez
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