Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is proud to announce that Chief Arnaldo Bernabe, our Director of Public Safety, was named by the Fund for The City of New York as one of
six public servants who will receive the
Sloan Public Service Award for 2014. Chief Bernabe is the first Hostos Community College employee to win the award and the first CUNY-wide Public Safety Officer to receive the honor.
Hostos President Félix V. Matos Rodríguez said that Chief Bernabe certainly had earned this prestigious award: “At Hostos we take great pride in providing a safe, inviting and pleasant environment that is conducive to learning, and this is a mission that Chief Bernabe and his team have fulfilled admirably.”
The Fund of The City of New York has been honoring New York City’s distinguished public servants since 1973. For over 38 years, the Fund has recognized City employees at all ranks and levels of government through its Sloan Public Service Awards, which are widely regarded as the Nobel Prizes of city government. This program annually recognizes six outstanding civil servants whose work performance and commitment to the public qualify as extraordinary, day after day and year after year.
In addition to honoring these winners, the Fund also acknowledges the contributions of many thousands of dedicated public servants who, with integrity and devotion, perform the work that keeps this complex city running.
About Chief Arnaldo Bernabe
Chief Arnaldo Bernabe serves as the Director of Public Safety at Eugenio María de Hostos Community College of The City University of New York (CUNY). He has 30 years of experience in the area of protection and policing service. During his 22 years with CUNY’s Public Safety Department, he has earned several merit awards for his work in crime prevention and community policing.
Bernabe began his career in University policing in 1992. Since then, he has served in the following positions: Sergeant 1992-1996 at Hostos Community College; Lieutenant/Assistant Director of Public Safety 1996–1997 at the Borough of Manhattan Community College; Assistant Director of Public Safety/Lieutenant 1997–1998 at Hostos Community College; and Director of Public Safety at Hostos Community College, 1998 to present.
Bernabe previously served as a member of the Division of School Safety Mobile Task Force Unit created under Mayor Dinkins’ “Safe Streets, Safe City” program, The Unit provided New York City school children with safe passage to and from schools. He has also had prior experience in both the corporate and hotel security industries.
Bernabe was honorably discharged from the United States Marine Corps after having served as a non-commissioned officer at U.S. Naval Station in Rota, Spain; Marine Barracks Security Detachment.
Bernabe is married to Grisel B. Porto, a member of the New York City Police Department School Safety Division, and they have a son, Arnaldo Bernabe Jr., and two daughters Maylyn and Julissa.
Education: Associate degree in public administration, HCC, 2001; bachelor's degree in security management, John Jay College of Criminal Justice; Certified Protection Professional program at John Jay College; currently enrolled at the CUNY School of Professional Studies, pursing a graduate degree in Public Administration, Graduate of the F.B.I. National Police Academy program at the F.B.I. Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
Certifications: New York State General Police Topics Instructor, NYS Police Instructor Evaluator, NYS Police Mental Health Instructor, NYS Police Domestic Violence Instructor and NYS Security Guard Instructor, Citizens Emergency Response Team Instructor. NYPD Basic Methods of Security Certified.
About Hostos Community College
Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is an educational agent for change that has been transforming and improving the quality of life in the South Bronx and neighboring communities since 1968. It serves as a gateway to intellectual growth and socioeconomic mobility, as well as a point of departure for lifelong learning, success in professional careers, and transfer to advanced higher education programs. The College’s unique "Student Success Coaching Unit" provides students with individualized guidance and exemplifies its emphasis on student support services.
Hostos offers 29 associate degree programs and five certificate programs that facilitate easy transfer to CUNY's four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions. The College has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development that offers professional development courses and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. Hostos is part of The City University of New York (CUNY), the nation's leading urban public university, which serves more than 480,000 students at 24 colleges.