They’re everyone’s favorite campus celebrities. Photos of them flood social media feeds, students stop to greet them on the way to class and hundreds attend their birthday parties. Cooper, Sarge and Ryder have become local legends at Northeastern University. To get the inside scoop on these pups, I interviewed Officer Rachel Jolliffe, Cooper’s handler and one of the founders of Northeastern’s Community Resource Dogs program.
Q: How many campus dogs are there and are there any plans to add more?
A: We have three currently: Cooper, Sarge and Ryder. Cooper is the first, Sarge was the second and we added Ryder in September. Cooper will be five in October, Sarge is going to be four on Jun. 9, and Ryder will turn one on Jun. 23. I would love to see more added; however, that’s not my decision.
Q: What fueled the decision to get the dogs?
A: I wrote a proposal back in 2017 and submitted it to my leadership team, and they then brought it forth to Northeastern’s leadership. It took roughly three years for the university to get on board, and when they did, Cooper joined in 2021. After Cooper had been here for just a few months, the benefits were so well-perceived that they decided to get Sarge within a year of having Cooper.
Q: How were their names chosen?
A: Cooper was named after the co-op program. The university asked for name suggestions on social media and “co-op” kept coming up. Sarge was named through the program from which he came, and that’s Puppies Behind Bars in New York. People can pay to name those dogs, and so I think the New York Police Sergeants Association paid to have [him] named. Ryder was named after the building. We let Student Life pick his name.
Q: Where did the dogs come from, and how were they selected and trained?
A: Cooper and Ryder came from a breeder/training company called Golden Opportunities for Independence. That breeder does a temperament test at six weeks old to see if they have the drive to work, and for the dogs that show that drive, they become service dogs.
Q: Where do the dogs sleep at night?
A: Cooper goes home with me, Sarge goes home with Sergeant Corbett and Ryder goes home with Officer Soto. Cooper has a 13-year-old brother who is an English cream labrador. Ryder has two brothers, a two-year-old German shepherd mix and a 13-year-old chihuahua. Sarge has no furry siblings but he has human siblings.
Q: Considering Northeastern’s mascot is a husky, why do you not have one on the team?
A: That’s a great question. I don’t know a lot about huskies in general; I’m not sure about their temperament or training capabilities. But, when we were discussing breeds for this particular job, the university wanted a dog that was easy to train and that was a people pleaser, and generally those types of dogs are labs and golden retrievers. Cooper and Ryder are English cream golden retrievers and Sarge is a black American labrador.
Q: What are the dogs’ jobs?
A: Cooper and Ryder are comfort dogs, so their primary role is to provide emotional support. That can come in the form of a one-on-one; they take appointments. Sometimes it can just be a regular visit, or it can be to help if a student or staff member is stressed. We also respond to mental health calls if the student thinks that having a dog there will help their situation. Their secondary function is that they’re being trained in “friendly find” search and rescue, and that could involve a missing kid, maybe [someone] with autism, Alzheimer’s, dementia. Sarge does engagement work as well, but his primary role is explosives detection.
Q: What does a one-on-one appointment look like?
A: Students just request an appointment to come in, and they can come alone or come with a friend or two. They either sit on the couch or on the ground, take out toys and if it’s Ryder or Cooper, they can give them treats. They just come and pet [them]. Some students ask if they can help train the dogs, so sometimes we’ll show them how we train. Most appointments are typically designated [for] 30 minutes.”
Q: What impact do you hope the dogs will have on students and staff?
A: It is my hope that having these dogs will help ease some of their stress, whether it’s students dealing with academics or other personal challenges, or staff who are just dealing with the challenges of being on the job. Whatever the reason, we just hope the dogs can help. They’re very well utilized. Last year, we had 384 requests, and this year we’re going to surpass 625 for the school year. The dogs are definitely being sought out, and a lot of the requests are for stress relief.
Q: Is there anything else you want students and staff to know about the dogs or NUPD in general?
A: NUPD is a great resource for the dogs, for our trainings, for engagement opportunities, for collaborations. We’re out in the community doing different engagement-related stuff on campus. We try to get out every week. We’d love for students to take advantage of the training we have to offer. We offer three different types of self-defense (basic, advanced and pepper spray). We have CPR and first aid. We offer pet CPR and pet first aid. We have situational awareness, de-escalation and active threat [trainings].
Officer Jolliffe told me, “I love every minute of my job, and it’s really because the dogs give us an opportunity to reach our students and staff. They make it an easy connection for us to be approachable.” By making a conscious effort to engage and build connections with the surrounding community, the Northeastern Police Department is a shining example of what college campus policing can be. These officers and their canine companions not only ensure the safety of students, staff and faculty, but also bring light and positivity to the campus community.