Campus Safety Highlight: Damyris Bagsby

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Thursday, August 22, 2024

By Deanna Rea

Damyris Bagsby is a Campus Safety Officer at Bakersfield College, and he works diligently to ensure the safety of all students, staff, and visitors on BC's Panorama campus. Throughout his life, Damyris has always gravitated toward the field of public safety. His journey is both unique and inspiring, marked by remarkable resilience in the face of adversity.

Damyris' career journey initially began with working inside a private prison in Taft (a tenure that lasted about twelve years), but he was forced to find other arrangements as the prison was closed indefinitely. At the suggestion of a former colleague, he decided to pursue a different career working on the road as a truck driver.

After experiencing the loss of a beloved family member, Damyris decided to return home. "My son's mother passed away, and I was gone on the road-I was out for ten days. After all of that, I just couldn't see myself getting back on the road and being gone for that long again, [so] I started putting out applications," he recalls. "But this line of work has always been something I've been good at-something I've just kind of gravitated [towards]."

In 2019, Damyris established his career as a Campus Safety Officer at Bakersfield College. His position on campus prompted him to return to school and earn an associate's degree in computer science, a long-time goal of his. When he first began working on campus, he deeply valued the positive atmosphere on campus, and he enjoyed interacting with and assisting students. "I started out [by] doing regular security work: making sure everything was secure [and keeping] students safe," he says. "You know, you want to provide a service for the community you serve [by] giving [students] rides and directions." His current responsibilities include working alongside both management and the other officers and maintaining an uplifting workplace environment.

His favorite part about working for BC is "The different perspectives because, on a college [campus], you have a lot of progressive thinking." Damyris elaborates by sharing how this has positively impacted his life, "To see a difference in myself from ten years ago versus now, it's like night and day. Back then, you couldn't stare at me for more than five seconds without me feeling threatened, but now it's [like], 'Do I know you from somewhere?' It's the [new] perspective on life that I've acquired as I have worked here."

Damyris shares that his greatest motivation in overcoming any challenge is always, "My kids. Coming to work and making sure they have everything they need, that's all the motivation I need."

One of his goals for the future includes pursuing his bachelor's and master's degrees in computer science concurrently at California State University. His advice for others who wish to pursue a career within the field of Public Safety is simply: "Enjoy it. [This career] is not something you have to gravitate toward, but [something] you can always learn from. You can always become a better person from it, [so] learn as much as you can from everyone-take a little piece from everyone."

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