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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Guide Weather Subscribe Contact Us February 11, 2005 Billings loves the social aspect of his job By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings Jason Billings came to Ashland to attend college and, thanks to the Oregon Police Corps scholarship program, the 27-year-old thinks he'll stick around for quite a while. Billings, a native of Seaside, graduated from Southern Oregon University in 2002 with degrees in Criminology and Human Communication. The police corps scholarship that helped him pay for college also guaranteed him a position in law enforcement somewhere in the state for at least four years. "The police corps came down to Ashland and was just getting started with it," said Billings, who was an SOU security officer while he attended the school. He applied for a patrol officer position and, in March, will mark his second anniversary of joining the Ashland Police Department. So far, he is the one and only APD officer hired through the police corps program. "It's fun," Billing said, explaining that being a police officer is a lot different than the jobs he had growing up. "It's definitely unique. It's a very independent job." As a patrol officer, Billings takes calls for service, investigates crimes and enforces traffic laws. The variety of the situations he encounters makes daily life different and exciting and, along the way, Billings gets to meet a lot of different people - admittedly his favorite part of the job. "We always strive for community connections," he said, explaining people have a lot of different views regarding the Ashland police. "I'd like to be perceived as a person." Billings is excited about the goals the department has set, especially the department's attempts to cut down on violence and destruction during holiday celebrations. He thinks he'll stick with patrol duties because that allows him to deal with people face-to-face and work outside. On his days off, Billings likes to take off with his two dogs - a boxer and a Rottweiler - to camp along a stream and pan for gold. Although he doesn't think he'll find his fortune in a Southern Oregon creek and retire from the force, he still wants to give the technique a try. "There's gold in every stream in Jackson County," Billings said. Staff writer Jennifer Squires can be reached at 488-3456 x 3019 or [email protected]. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Slippers Women's & Men's Slippers Ceramic Piggy Banks heloc libor rate Calenders 2005 Calender 2005 Accelerate Weightloss Products Memory Foam Mattress afsa studentloans home equity loans teleconferencing W2 Forms fasa student loans Matchmaking & Dating Scripts African Safari Conference Calls - $50/Month Security Systems student loan consolidation wholesale diamonds Currancy Exchange web conferencing Online Casinos Community Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams