Editor’s Note: “10 Questions” is part of a weekly series in which Daily reporter Nina Fox interviews a prominent person in the Iowa State and Ames communities. To suggest someone for her to interview, send an e-mail request to [email protected]. This week’s interview is with Ames Police Chief Dennis Ballantine.

What do you do as chief of the Ames Police Department?

Well, I just oversee the operation. It’s a pretty typical law enforcement agency. We have patrolling, detectives, animal control and parking.

Do you have any projects or programs that are coordinated with the ISU Department of Public Safety?

We’ve been getting real active in that kind of effort in the last four or five years, not only with ISU DPS, but with the Story County sheriff’s office.

We have a law enforcement development program [LEAD] which gives assistance to the employees of the department. It’s a joint effort between all three. We’re also involved in SART [Sexual Assault Response Team], along with a sexual assault response team in which ISU, Story County and the Ames PD all have representatives, too. We have gotten involved in a drug task force … so there are a number of activities going on involving all three agencies.

Has there ever been a situation where DPS has had to call on the Ames PD for help?

It comes up periodically. It usually involves situations where there may be a need for weapons. In fact, if [DPS] is going into something on campus where there is any kind of communication that could be involved with someone being armed, they’ll request backup from us, but it’s not too frequent.

What are the most common types of cases you deal with directly?

Ames has always been a town that had a lower national average on crimes against persons, but a higher national average on crimes against property.

Probably, the most common crimes we deal with are burglaries and thefts, also a lot of alcohol-related crimes, including drunk driving, intox or fights.

How does the Ames Police Department work with the Boone and Nevada Police Departments?

We’ll get involved in things periodically with them because the mobility of criminals are typically in the area of drugs, but beyond that, like I said, most of our activities are with the Story County Sheriff’s Office or with DPS. We do have a monthly meeting that takes place, we invite everyone basically from central Iowa … and we’ll see what’s going on.

When is it OK for the Ames PD to step in and take action for situations that occurred on the ISU campus?

Iowa State campus is within the city limits of Ames, so we have authority on it at all times.

Does the Ames PD offer any programs, for example, self-defense, to the students of ISU?

We used to do an awful lot of that. We would talk to students, offer classes on preventing sexual assault or the effects of alcohol use, vandalism, parties, and on and on. We still do to some extent, but ISU DPS in the last few years has started to pick up on a lot of that, and what they’re teaching is the same thing that we would be teaching.

We still do a lot in the greek areas because the greeks are off campus.

What is the most challenging aspect of your job?

One of the great things about working in a college community is that the town is alive because of the young people. But that is a unique challenge because no matter what we can come up with, whatever potential solution to problems we think we can find, if the students don’t go along with it, they can be very innovative in finding ways around it.

In a college community, you have to redo everything almost every year because of the large influx of new people, and you have to teach the new people who come in positive instructions or negative by filing charges or writing tickets. The biggest challenge is to stay up with Iowa State students and to try to keep them in line with what you think is appropriate.

Have you set goals for yourself this year and for the department?

We are getting heavily into community-oriented programs. We’ve started a citizen police academy, we’ve been doing a lot with the neighborhood groups and we’re trying to evolve into the student groups.

Our goal is to get … a department that is fully assimilated, a community where you’re almost one with fighting crime. We understand what they’re doing, and they understand what we’re doing. You work together toward that goal.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

In the summertime, I enjoy playing golf and reading. And I enjoy Iowa State sports, so I watch and pay attention to that.