Highlands Welcomes Two Police Officers to District
At its August 2018 meeting, the Highlands School Board approved the hiring of Police Officer Jeffrey A. Sheldon and Police Officer Joseph Naviglia, Jr. for the Highlands School Police Department. Sheldon replaces Police Officer Richard Pritchard, who accepted a position at West Mifflin School District in July.
Their primary responsibilities with the district are to supervise and implement new security and safety measures and maintain a safe and secure environment for all Highlands students and staff. Since their first days on the job in late August, both officers Sheldon and Naviglia have quickly acquainted themselves with our district schools and have already established an authoritative, yet welcoming, presence among the students and staff. Officer Sheldon has a home base at the High School, while Officer Naviglia’s home base is the Middle School. Both officers visit and patrol all Highlands schools on a daily basis.
One of Officer Sheldon’s goals is to increase and strategically place new surveillance cameras throughout our buildings. He also hopes to encourage and reinforce to both employees and students that when it comes to safety - if you see something, say something. “It never hurts to check things out for the safety and concern of all,” said Sheldon. Aside from patrolling the schools and enforcing the laws of the Commonwealth on school property, Officer Naviglia would like to get to know the students better. “I want to interact more with the elementary and middle school students. I hope to be a positive role model in their lives,” he said.
About Officer Sheldon
A 1980 graduate of Springdale High School, Officer Jeffrey A. Sheldon earned a BS in Sociology/Psychology from St. Vincent College and a MA in Criminology from Indiana University of PA. He fulfilled Act 120 Police Training with Allegheny County Police Training Academy and Act 2 Deputy Sheriff Training through the Dickenson School of Law. He graduated with the 203rd Class of the FBI National Academy.
Sheldon was employed with the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, initially as a Deputy Sheriff for 7 years and as Sergeant for 24 years until 2016. He served as a Police Officer for Gateway School District for a year prior to coming to Highlands.
Officer Sheldon also had the privilege to work as the Security Detail Director at the 2016 U.S. Open in Oakmont, the Supervisor of Mobile Field Force Echo for Pittsburgh’s G20 Summit and the National Football League’s Security Detail Supervisor for Visiting Teams to Pittsburgh for 17 years. He was also honored with inductions to the Allegheny Valley School District Hall of Fame in 2016 and the St. Vincent College Sports Hall of Fame in 2018.
Sheldon’s family includes wife Jayne, who is an elementary music teacher in the Allegheny Valley School District, daughter Juliann, a public relations specialist with Charlotte Area Transit in North Carolina, and son Drew, a recent graduate of the Duquesne School of Law. Drew awaits his bar exam results and plans to practice in criminal law. In Officer Sheldon’s spare time, he enjoys traveling, bike riding and a day on the golf course (even though he claims he is terrible at golf)!
About Officer Naviglia
A 1980 Highlands graduate, Officer Joseph T. Naviglia, Jr. received his Act 120 Police Training through Indiana University of PA and earned credits at Penn State toward a Parks and Recreation degree.
Naviglia had 26 years of service, with 17 of them as Chief of Police, with the Springdale Borough Police Department before retiring in May 2013. He spent three years as a school police officer between Community Day School in Squirrel Hill (2015-2017) and Gateway School District (2017-2018) prior to returning to his alma mater. He also maintains part-time employment with the East Deer Township Police Department.
Officer Naviglia had the honor of being the Security Detail during former Vice President Al Gore’s visit to the Rachel Carson Homestead during Gore’s presidential campaign.
Born and raised in the A-K Valley, Naviglia is happy to return “home”. “I’m looking forward to being a part of the Highlands family again - R4L (Rams for Life),” he said.
Naviglia’s family includes his wife Michele and son JT, who resides in Brackenridge and is a full-time police officer with the Allegheny Health Network (Allegheny Valley Hospital). He is one of the first sets of recruits to be assigned to hospitals. The Naviglias also have two dogs – Kia, 4 year old Pitbull/Rottweiler rescue, and a 4.5 year old German Shepherd named Mya.