Mid-State’s director of safety and security earns safety award

Chris Rugowski

Contributor

July 6, 2026

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – Mid-State Technical College Director of Safety and Security Andrew Dewitt has received the J. Timothy Greene Risk Impact Award from Districts Mutual Insurance (DMI), recognizing his leadership in campus safety and risk management.

The award – according to districtsmutualinsurance.com – honors individuals for behind-the-scenes contributions to advancing safety and reducing risk.

According to the website, the award was created in recognition of Timothy Greene’s work at Waukesha Technical College about 40 years ago.

Dewitt said Greene was “very instrumental and passionate about safety.” 

After leaving the college system, Greene joined DMI, where he remained committed to advancing insurance and risk management representation, according to the website.

“He became the first safety consultant in risk management for the insurance company,” Dewitt said. “When he died, they named the award after him to be given to those individuals throughout the Wisconsin Technical College system who are passionate about safety and doing things behind the scenes that are producing and keeping a safe school environment.”

Applicants for the award, Dewitt said, are nominated by their peers within their own college.

Since its inception, the award has recognized 40 recipients.

Safety comes first

Dewitt said when he first came to Mid-State, earning recognition wasn’t a priority, as his focus was on aligning and advancing specific projects.

“One of the projects was renumbering all the exterior doors so it would parallel the International Fire Code,” he said. “Everything in the code requires businesses and institutions to number their doors from first to last, starting at the main entrance.”

Dewitt said the process was necessary as campus additions over the years led to changes in doors and updated directional signage. 

Another upgrade, he said, was classroom safety maps, which display exits, shelters, AEDs, Narcan and other emergency resources.

Dewitt said they also upgraded the emergency notification system to InformaCast, a platform that sends alerts to students and staff across multiple devices.

He said the previous system was limited to email, text and cell phones, while the new system also reaches laptops, hallway monitors and office desk phones.

“You can imagine the effort this took, as we have seven different locations in three different cities for Mid-State alone,” he said.

Dewitt said he does not need recognition, but it’s special and encouraging to be spotlighted for efforts that can otherwise pass by unknown. 

Though he said across technical college campuses, many employees – regardless of role – go above and beyond, putting their “heart and soul” into safety efforts. 

“We see that when we meet with our safety and security group monthly with DMI,” he said. “With everyone in the room, you see the passion and the expertise from everyone. It’s inspiring and motivating for me.”

Especially regarding behind-the-scenes work, Dewitt said security measures are not meant to be noticed until it is needed.

As the director of safety and security, Dewitt said his role is to protect everyone who comes to campus – students, staff and the general public. 

“We want this to be a safe learning environment,” he said. “If people are coming here with a perceived black cloud over them, worried about their safety, their mind isn’t going to be focused on what’s important while they’re here.”

Dewitt said having someone dedicated to safety can help boost productivity by giving employees confidence that their well-being is being looked after. 

Though his role centers on safety, he said he believes it extends beyond any one job title, ultimately coming down to a simple message: “If you see something, say something.” 

Dewitt said his background in law enforcement – 30 years with the local police department in various roles and safety training – helped shape his work. 

“Obviously, police safety training is different from what you’d have here at the college, but it’s always been ingrained into my professional life as well as my volunteer life,” he said. “I came to Mid-State originally in a part-time security role. When I started, they didn’t have a safety department. A lot of that responsibility was farmed out and happening in different silos, so they were looking for somebody to put this all together and get some oversight on it from a management standpoint.”

When he was asked to take on the role, Dewitt said he accepted for a couple of reasons, including his love of a challenge and a desire to ensure initiatives were sustainable and did not fall by the wayside.

Safety, he said, is never-ending, with an understanding that there is always more work to be done. 

“We have a great safety track record here,” he said. “We’ve never had serious injuries or issues that I’m aware of. We’re doing very well, and I want to keep it that way.”

Building trust

As his role at Mid-State has evolved, Dewitt said he has seen growing awareness and expectations around campus safety.

“There were a lot of questions from our management team, not necessarily scrutiny, but rather more focused on how we were to accomplish the goals and what it entails,” he said. “The staff are very supportive and willing to try something they’ve never done before and step outside the box.”

Dewitt said his role as director of safety and security is about building connections and developing relationships with staff, not coming in with demands or pushing requirements. 

When the role was created, he said he made a concerted effort to avoid a “heavy hammer” approach.

“I had a ton of conversations with people throughout the college in all positions from faculty to campus deans to executive leadership members to let them know I was the new guy on the block, not them,” he said. “Because I didn’t have a safety background specific to this kind of work, I wanted to learn more about what they’ve done previously.”

Dewitt said he first took time to understand how safety processes worked, who was responsible for specific measures and inspections and how the system operated.

He said he then went a step further, asking what improvements others would suggest.

Dewitt said the approach took time, but as relationships developed, people became more comfortable and began seeking his input on solutions.

One example, he said, involved an instructor who needed student and teacher access to a room with an exterior door that needed to remain locked for security reasons.

Dewitt said the issue was resolved by converting the door to keycard access, meeting both security and access needs with a simple solution.

Shaping the future

Dewitt said as he reflects on what he has learned in his role – including OSHA 30 certification, which offers a comprehensive background in educational safety scenarios – he is confident in the support of his leadership team and instructors.

“We have a number of instructors who have a safety background and an education in it, which includes training, so I continue to learn from those folks to increase my knowledge,” he said.

About 10 months ago, Dewitt said leadership approved the hiring of a part-time safety director, adding a 30-year veteran in higher education safety to the team.

“It’s unbelievable the amount of knowledge it takes to be able to create a safe environment for staff and students,” he said.

Dewitt said the award validates and adds credibility to him and Mid-State Technical College, noting it is one of a limited number given across Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges. 

He said whether someone is affiliated with the college or not, this commitment signals to the community that the institution is forward-thinking in areas such as behind-the-scenes safety efforts. 

“The things we’re doing are not only the right thing to do, but they’re also supported by OSHA regulations,” he said. “People are going to feel confident when they come here for work, education and more. It’s going to keep building our reputation for years to come.”