Growing up, Larissa Hernandez wanted to become a nurse, but she didn’t like needles. Instead, she became a police officer.
And it’s worked out. This is her eighth year with the Ector County ISD Police Department and recently, she was awarded the Police Officer of the Year laurel for the district.
Previously, Hernandez worked for the Odessa Police Department for about six years. She started as a civilian when she was 19 and worked as a civilian for four years before going to the police academy.
Hernandez has some family members in law enforcement. Her uncle was an investigator for the Ector County District Attorney’s Office and a distant cousin retired from the Ector County Sheriff’s Office recently.
Hernandez said she was honored to be nominated for Officer of the Year.
“I was surprised because I really don’t pay attention to the things I do every day … so I was just kind of oblivious to that. I just come to work and do my job and then people notice and I got nominated. It was a surprise to me,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said she’s going to keep doing what she always does.
“I come in every day with the same mindset of doing what needs to be done …,” Hernandez said.
Working for the district police, she said she feels she has grown professionally as an officer more than she would have in a larger department.
“… We’re so much smaller, so they … invest in us a lot. But as far as every day what I enjoy, I just like working with the kids, honestly. I know that’s … the the answer that everybody gives, but I genuinely do. I love working with the kids. School-based law enforcement is your first step in community policing … and community relations. We work with these kids every single day and you get to know them over the years. You know them from when they’re in middle school to now they’re adults and I think that’s most rewarding is seeing how far they’ve come,” Hernandez said.
She added that she has been able to turn some students around.
“… Obviously, with any law enforcement, you usually deal with people on their bad days. And so you have those kids that are your constants. They’re always getting in trouble, or they’re getting arrested. When you see them a couple years later, we see they kind of turned their life around. … They tell you, ‘You inspired me to do better. You’ve inspired me to pursue law enforcement.’ It’s rewarding because I don’t think of myself in that way,” Hernandez said.
She added that the ECISD Police Department has a lot of experienced officers.
“… We have a lot of officers that have been in law enforcement for 20-plus years and so they know a lot of things that someone that’s only been in for 10 years still has the opportunity to learn. I’m right at that 10-year mark where I’m still learning from the older guys that have been through it all; experienced it all. … It’s a lot of knowledge to gain,” Hernandez said.
Last year, she was stationed at Odessa High School and this coming year she will be in investigations based out of the police department.
Hernandez will look into the more serious offenses that campus officers wouldn’t be able to dedicate their time to such as booster club thefts and sexual offenses.
“… Campus officers are running a million miles a minute dealing with everyday things,” Hernandez said.
Her new position will take her off the campuses, so she’ll see things with fresh eyes.
“… I’m just going in and gathering facts and presenting it like, do we have a case, we don’t have a case and I don’t have a personal opinion with teachers or principals that I’ve worked with,” Hernandez said.
Born and raised in Odessa, Hernandez had her son, Aaron, when she was in high school at AIM High School.
She added that she will miss being on campuses.
“This will be my first time in 10 years that I haven’t been in a patrol position. I like to stay busy and I like the excitement of the every day, interacting with the students every day; the principals; the teachers, so I’m excited for my new position, but I am going to miss the everyday hustle and bustle of the high school,” Hernandez said.
Starting off, she served five years at Ector Middle School before it became an in-district charter, followed by Permian and Odessa high schools.
The district officers are one of the engines that make the district go.
“The police officers for the campuses, we’re in it every day with the school administrators and I don’t think a lot of people see that; how much work actually goes into running a school from the moment the custodians get there to just every day, throughout the entire day. It’s really busy. It’s like its own little city and … we’re there for safety. But we’re also there to help the principals in whatever they need, especially at a high school level. You have kids that are driving and so we … work traffic,” she said.
“It really does take a lot to run a school, and especially like a high school like OHS, almost 4,000 students. It takes a lot of energy to run it. It takes a lot of personnel and it takes a lot of teamwork,” Hernandez said.
She added that the past couple of years they were blessed at OHS because they worked so well together as a team.
Hernandez said it’s a lot of work, but it’s rewarding.
“… I think that’s where a lot of the relationships come from, working so closely with them. … I was at Ector for five years, but a lot of those kids transferred up to high school and it makes things … a lot more easier, I think, for them and for us when they find out we’re there because it’s like a comfort for them; like I’m going, I’m scared to go to high school, but I know you’re there, so I’m okay. I’m not that scared anymore. It’s rewarding. It really is,” she added.
School-based law enforcement is different from regular law enforcement.
“It takes a lot of patience and a lot of understanding because at the end of the day, we are still working with kids that lack coping skills. … Hopefully, our presence in their lives everyday makes a difference on how they view law enforcement in the future. … Hopefully, with the relationships we build in middle school helps in high school; at all the schools really because we cover elementaries. We have officers at middle schools; we have them in high schools and so it really does help bridge that gap between the youth and law enforcement,” she added.
Chief Todd Hiner said Hernandez richly deserves officer of the year honors.
“Larissa Hernandez is a very energetic Officer who actively engages with those around her. She has a great ability to connect with the students and educators. She has plenty of common sense, as well as courage, and is well thought of by those that she serves and works along with. She is highly deserving of the recognition,” Hiner said in an email.
