ODESSA, Texas — Being a police officer isn’t an easy job.
"I wanted to be a police officer since I was little," UT Permian Basin Officer Georgia Reyes said. "My dad used to watch police movies and from there I was like, 'I want to be a police officer.'"
But for some cops, like Officer Reyes, they make it look pretty easy.
"In the morning we'll come in, we'll debrief with the shift [before] and if they're looking for somebody, if something happened in the city that we should know about like 'hey, this happened [in] the city, they're probably looking for somebody,' we’ll usually know about everything that's going on, even around campus," said Officer Reyes.
A campus she now protects.
"Before I even do anything, elsewhere, I usually go around," Officer Reyes said. "I make sure everything on campus is good. So I'll do like a direct patrol of the entire campus."
Officer Reyes has been monitoring UTPB for almost a year and a half.
"Anything that's going on on campus, we try to stay on top of it," said Officer Reyes.
But contrary to her title, she deals with a lot more than just rowdy college students.
"It's surrounding the school where I feel like where we have more [crime]," Officer Reyes said. "Like I've had somebody going almost 80 [miles per hour] right here in front of campus and I remember I tried to do a traffic stop and then he ended up evading and crashed out."
Officer Reyes may look sweet, but she’s one cop you don’t want to mess with.
Out of all 15 UT System campuses, including the big schools in UT Austin and UT Dallas, Reyes stood above the rest this past February.
"So through the UT Systems I got the Officer of the Month," said Officer Reyes.
And the accolades didn’t stop there.
"And then for our [UTPB] Police Department, I got Officer of the Year," said Officer Reyes.
A title she earned in a field seemingly dominated by men.
"Like even when I started the Academy I was the only girl on our shift," Officer Reyes said. "At one point, I think it was one girl then two girls. But it could be 12 officers and you had one female and it's always been like that like, it's always it's mostly males."
Officer Reyes doesn’t let that stop her from continuing to make sure these UTPB Falcons continue to soar.
In fact, she is a part of an all-female police shift at the university.
"So my sergeant Viviana Vasquez, she's also a female and then our dispatcher is a female," Officer Reyes said. "It's a pretty small shift, but we're all girls. We work really well together. I feel like out of all the shifts I feel like we have like a really good partnership. [...] We're fighting, we're fighting and we're chasing, we're chasing, we are on it like we work so well."
And when you have that chemistry, chances are there are good results.
"We're the ones with the top numbers, top arrests, traffic stops, contacts, everything like it's the female shift," said Officer Reyes.
On an everyday basis, Reyes is kicking butt and taking names, all with a huge smile on her face.
"I love my job," Reyes said. "And I think sometimes not everybody loves their job, but I know I do. And I try to do everything that I do with that in mind. Like I know I love my job and whatever I do, I try to do my best. [...] I do everything with love but also like respect. [...] But I feel like if you do it right, I think everybody else notices that."
And let’s just say people noticed, as it takes a lot to warrant an Officer of the Year award after your first year in the department.
A department she will be protecting and serving for a very long time.
"It's fun," Reyes said. "Like it's really fun."