|
Peter
Jackson ('97) returned to campus this spring, not as
typical alum who comes to see old professors or changes
in buildings, but in an official capacity. He looked
over his alma mater with a critical eye, calculating
where to position people and vehicles to minimize security
threats to Senator Hillary Clinton during her visit
to campus in April. Then he watched over the crowds
who gathered to hear her speak.
Peter
works out of the Syracuse Resident Office of the United
States Secret Service. His job takes him to many locations
in Central New York, but he also has lived at length
in Washington D.C.
"I
do a little of everything," he said. "Every
day is different than the day before."
He
does two main things from the Syracuse office: investigates
counterfeiters and protects dignitaries. He investigates
things like counterfeit U.S. currency issues, identity
theft and e-mail scams. In his role as a protector,
he may be asked to provide security for foreign heads
of state, high-level foreign dignitaries, the president
and his family, the vice-president and his family and
major presidential candidates.
He
was on the job when Sen. Clinton made her visit to BCC
in April, and having been on campus as a student some
years earlier definitely made his job easier.
"It
was great being back. I knew where everything was. I
knew all the people. In the gymnasium that day, I saw
a lot of my old professors and they said 'Hi" to
me."
Peter
is from a family of BCC graduates. His parents, Gary
('73) and Patricia ('72), and brother Joe ('95) all
graduated from BCC, as well as Peter's wife Heather
('98). Joe is also in the Secret Service and influenced
his brother's choice to apply to the Service. When Peter
finished his education with a BA degree in History and
Political Science from SUNY Cortland in 1998, he thought
he would be a social studies teacher, but the influence
of Joe who was already working in the White House helped
to change that. Still, his coursework at BCC, especially
an American Government course, helped him better understand
his first assignment at the White House.
Before
he took the job at the Syracuse office, he worked at
the White House as a Uniformed Division Agent for 2
1/2 years. He was there for President Clinton's last
year in office and President Bush's inauguration. It
was an exciting place to work. "I stood next to
kings and queens and First Ladies," he said. "I
met famous people: Sean Connery, Jimmy Buffet, the Yankees
from the 2000 World Series."
He
was also at the White House on September 11, 2001.
"I
was outside of the West Wing when everything started
happening. I heard the plane that flew into the Pentagon,"
he said. He had just called his brother, another special
agent who was working in New York City, so he knew about
the planes that had hit the towers.
"We
just started getting people away from the White House
as fast as possible. We figured it would be a target."
Though
interesting at times, Peter wanted to move on from the
White House uniformed detail ("Hours of boredom
and minutes of excitement," as he described it).
He took a test and was reassigned as a special agent
in February of 2002.
With
this new position, he moved back to central New York
and enjoys more variety in his job. Whether he is serving
a warrant, investigating financial crime, doing advance
work for a dignitary's visit or watching over the protectee
while he or she is in the Central New York region, he
knows he will not be doing the same thing each day.
He is also required to spend a month on the president's
security rotation every few months.
He
encourages others who enjoy such work to enter the Secret
Service. Call the Syracuse office for more information
at (315) 448-0304 or go online at www.secretservice.com.
Peter
has a special privilege of serving the country in this
way. As the Special Agent in Charge once said to him,
"You're a soldier in a suit."
Back
to Alumni Profiles
|
