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EDUCATION Phoenix High officer looks back on varied career Jan Bailey ended the latest chapter last week Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 23, 2015 at 2:13 PM By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 23, 2015 at 2:13 PM » Social News PHOENIX — After more than 30 years in uniform, Phoenix High School resource officer Jan Bailey has worn her badge for the last time. Having done everything from serving as a peacekeeper for the United Nations to working major homicide and sex abuse cases in the region, Bailey said she got the most satisfaction out of  helping victims of abuse. Finishing her law enforcement days as Phoenix High's top cop, Bailey said she was thankful for the places her career has taken her and the variety of opportunities she's had. "No regrets," she said last week during her final days on the job. "I feel very, very lucky for the things I've been able to do. I've seen a lot of tears come through that door and I feel like the kids have been really comfortable coming to me." An accomplished western folk musician and mother to four daughters, Bailey said she's excited to wear civilian clothes and not answer an alarm clock for the first time in three decades. Now 62, Bailey began her law enforcement career in 1980 as a legal assistant for the Benton County district attorney, assisting male officers with sexual assault and child abuse victims. One of the region's first female officers when she joined the Philomath police force — as a reservist in 1982 and as patrol officer two years later — she was hired as a major crime detective for Ashland police in 1987. During her tenure there, Bailey solved a serial rapist case and was one of the founding members of the Jackson County Child Abuse Task Force, which led to the creation of the Children's Advocacy Center. Hired as a full-time trainer at the Oregon Police Academy in 1998, Bailey was recruited two years later for a United Nations police mission in post-war Bosnia in which she trained Bosnian police and ran a task force to find and rescue trafficking victims. She was eventually promoted to commander of a unit of 360 international police and support staff in the Bihac region near the border with Croatia, and several years later she deployed for a second U.N. mission in Liberia, West Africa. The first female officer to be posted outside the Liberian capital, Bailey recruited and trained Liberian police and spent her "down time" helping a local makeshift orphanage, ultimately arranging for nine children to be sponsored by an Oregon adoption agency. Upon completion of her mission, Bailey brought two little girls, daughters Sadie and Sara, home to the Rogue Valley. "I had not planned on adopting kids when I went over there but when I saw what was going on — children have no value there — I wanted to help in whatever way that I could," Bailey said. Home with two new daughters, Bailey applied for a newly posted position with the Phoenix Police Department as a school resource officer. "I was just back from Liberia with these two little girls and I needed to work the same hours they were in school," she recalls. While it was a major transition from international peacekeeper to school resource officer, Bailey said she felt equally needed in both roles. Phoenix High Principal Jani Hale said Bailey has been a true advocate for students during her eight-year tenure. "For a lot of kids, it's not just about what happens in the classroom but what happens in the hallways. If I have an SRO that makes these kids feel safe and like they've got their back, that makes all the difference for some of these kids," Hale said. "I've seen all kinds of SROs and this is the kind you want. It's not just about, 'I've got a uniform on.' It's about, do we have someone they want to talk to or that they want to avoid?" Chris Elkin, student manager for Phoenix High School, said Bailey would be sorely missed. In his 21 years of law enforcement and high school management, Elkin said, he's rarely seen compassion like Bailey's. "She's been so trusted by students, especially the victims of abuse," Elkin said. "For her to be able to sit and listen to that and follow through is so mentally draining. There are days where a lot of people would want to go home and just cry, so for her to do this job for as many years as she's done it and to still show that kind of compassion is pretty special." Bailey plans a return to her passions of making music — she opened for country superstar Brad Paisley once at Britt — horseback riding and life in the country.  "My kids are all grown and doing their own thing so now it's time for me to do that, too," Bailey says. "When I got into law enforcement, I never wanted to be a patrol officer. I wanted to help people and to help kids. I feel so lucky for all I've been given the chance to do." Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected]. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 23, 2015 at 2:13 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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