Seventeen move-ins, and 17 move-outs: That’s how the UO Police Department’s Herb Horner frames his nearly two decades at the University of Oregon, which comes to a close at the end of June.
This week’s move-out operation, making sure signs, UO staff and contracted security personnel work together to safely ease students and families off-campus, will be his last.
In between those bookends, Horner has made an impression on UO colleagues past and present with a perfect combination of get-it-done professionalism and an affable demeanor that seemed tailor-made for the college environment.
“When I first visited UOPD I will never forget pulling into the parking lot and being greeted by Herb and his big smile,” Chief Matt Carmichael said. “Herb is definitely a member of the community that will leave an everlasting, positive impression.”
Horner’s secret, if there is one besides an innate charm and a twinkle in his eyes, is that he has always felt he’s firmly on the same page with his campus colleagues from other departments.
“Herb’s work with students has been exceptional,” said Senior Associate Dean of Students Sheryl Eyster, who herself started at the UO in 1999. “He truly understands the mission of our campus, valuing students with respect and compassion.”
Before arriving the UO, Horner worked for 13 years as a police and court officer in his native Hawaii, after serving six years in the Army. But his personality, perceptiveness and adaptability allowed him to sample some unexpected roles, including as a vice president of sales for a Hawaii oil company and a service manager at a Eugene car dealership.
Some of his favorite past work had been with a driver improvement program with Maui courts, working with juvenile offenders. At the UO, he knew that public safety needed a strong relationship with the student conduct offices with the dean of students and University Housing, a united approach to helping students learn from mistakes.
“I’ve absolutely loved working with everyone here, because we’re all here for the same reason: helping students succeed,” he said. “The only way any of us would be successful was to work together.”
Coming to what was then the Department of Public Safety, he saw his role as steadily improving the professionalism of the unit, which led to higher standards in hiring and certification of nonsworn officers, as the university slowly moved toward joining many similar institutions with their own police departments.
When the UO finally made the change to police in 2012, Horner elected not to go back to the police academy to become sworn and certified again, and instead oversaw the nonsworn security division of UOPD, with an emphasis on organizing security for the special events that he had become so familiar with, from football games to concerts to commencement processions.
Horner has helped safely put on three U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials and numerous dignitary visits, including the Dalai Lama and future-President Barack Obama, which was one of Horner’s favorite memories for the opportunity to talk face-to-face with the then-candidate and get the measure of someone who would lead the country for eight years.
“It’s been an incredible place to work,” Horner said. “It really has.”
Those who know Horner would expect him to use retirement to hone his already formidable golf and tennis games, but his plans start with spending time he hasn’t had for improvements to his 100-year-old-plus house near Walterville. Then, he’s looking at how he might return to public service as a volunteer.
“I feel like I can really offer something,” Horner said. Dozens of UO colleagues would surely agree.
UOPD is hosting an open house retirement reception for Horner on Monday, June 26, from 4-6 p.m. in Room 101, Living Learning Center South, refreshments provided. Attendees are asked to RSVP to Rachel Dale at UOPD, at rachel.dale@uopd.org.
—By Kelly McIver, University Communications