Melvin Warren spent many years working as a detective in the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office. In that role, he handled cases large and small regularly. With Essex, including Newark and its suburbs, there was plenty to keep that office–and Warren–very busy.

Warren, the Public Safety Coordinator at Warren Community College since 2016, used his know-how from his time in the Prosecutor’s Office and other life experiences, including ten years as the Criminal Justice Chair of the New Jersey NAACP, in making WCC into one of the safest colleges in the country, according to a recent study.

Warren says his strategy in getting the college to this point is simple: “It’s a community effort.” That community effort includes a relationship with students and staff, the Washington Township and Phillipsburg police departments (WCC has campuses in Washington and Phillipsburg), the N.J. State Police, the Sheriff’s department, and EMS teams. Warren keeps everybody engaged through this philosophy.

“We’re all in this together,” said Warren. “I used my experience to design a program that benefits the college and the community as a whole.”

At the college, Warren, who is also the Advisor to the Student Government Association, listens to what students have to say about what they hear among their peers on social media and the community. Additionally, he taps into the staff for notable information.

“I’m gathering intel, in a way,” he said. “Everybody’s got a stake in living and working in as safe an environment as possible. We have to work together on this. There can’t be a good guy – bad guy thing or you versus us.”

“Melvin deserves a lot of credit,” noted Dr. Will Austin, President of WCC. “He’s brought a lot of people into the mix to produce a clearly defined safety package that works.” 

Warren once did security of another sort – working for heavyweight world boxing champion Michael Moorer and other boxers, including Shannon Briggs and Michael Covington. Warren is also a graduate of Warren Community College, having attained an Associate in Science degree. He also has a B.A. & A.A.S. from Thomas Edison State University.

As a resident of Washington Township, Warren takes community to another level as a Township youth coach in basketball and football. He also supports the area as a member of Clifford Alford Lodge #165 and the Morris County Jack and Jill Inc. Fathers Auxiliary.

Meanwhile, his program design for a safe college campus is something that his peers have urged him to package and present to other colleges.

“It is something I believe could work anywhere,” said Warren. “Even though we are a small rural college without dorms, fraternities, and sororities, we still have a lot of similarities to larger schools. If we had dorms here, we’d still use pretty much the same safety program we currently have in place.”