The Superintendent of the Massachusetts State police, Colonel Christopher Mason, came into Leominster High School to talk with students in Rene Lafayette’s Street Law class.

The talk was well attended and the students came prepared with questions.

Colonel Mason talked about the state of the Massachusetts State Police and how they are looking into the future.

“For the Mass State Police,” said the Colonel, “we have a defined mission. Our mission is to work in partnership with our local communities to provide safety.”

The students asked him everything from the recent problems between communities and their police, to the recent call to defund the police. He responded that police look at citizens as regular people, just like them. He explained that the police are just part of our community. 

The Colonel has said the state police are very understaffed. He did not say whether that was from lack of funding or lack of applicants. 

He also talked about his experience in the state police and how much this job means to him. Colonel Mason joked “I love this job. Don’t tell my wife, but it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

He also mentioned that after the recent public incidents that have happened, for example, the recent murder trial for Kyle Rittenhouse, who shot and killed 2 people at a BLM protest, that despite it happening in another part of the country, the state police were still affected here. They have had to increase security at events because of it. 

It also adds more stress to the job. He continued deeper with this subject, into the mental wellness of the troopers. If a trooper has had a rough day that might affect his performance and his mental health. In those cases, they might send him home for a while.

Mr. Lafayette, on behalf of the whole school, ended the talk by providing Colonel Mason with a framed picture. The students even made a bulletin board with information about him to educate the students that didn’t know who he is before the event.