Tony Callisto
After 15 years of dedicated service to Syracuse University, Tony Callisto has announced that he will retire as senior vice president for safety and chief law enforcement officer on June 30, 2021. Callisto will then transition to a senior advisor role to provide support to the chief financial officer and assist in the transition in leadership in Campus Safety and Emergency Services.
“Tony’s commitment to the community, leadership skills, dedication to service and competence in a wide variety of safety and risk functions have served the University and its students, faculty and staff well for the past 15 years,” says Amir Rahnamay-Azar, senior vice president of business, finance and administrative services and chief financial officer. “I look forward to his continued counsel and wish him well as he transitions toward retirement.”
Callisto came to Syracuse University in January 2006, after a 25-year career with the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office where he rose through the ranks to become chief deputy sheriff. He was named the University’s chief of public safety in May 2007. Callisto led the department through a transition to campus peace officer status, created improved training programs, developed comprehensive policies and procedures, implemented significant upgrades in technology and equipment, opened a new campus emergency communication center, significantly expanded the role of Department of Public Safety officers in providing for student safety both on and off campus, and developed new strategies for campus community policing and student engagement. Under Callisto’s leadership, the department achieved international accreditation from the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators Accreditation Commission.
Callisto became senior vice president for safety and chief law enforcement officer in November of 2014. In that role, he has led several key initiatives, including the development of a comprehensive Universitywide enterprise risk management program; creation of the Orange Insurance Company, a parent captive insurance program that solely supports Syracuse University’s liability insurance needs; improvements in environmental health and safety compliance, laboratory and workshop safety, campus transportation systems, emergency management and business continuity planning; creation of a global safety program supporting University constituents who travel outside of the Syracuse area both nationally and internationally; and continuous improvements in law enforcement, community safety and security services both on and off campus. Together with other leaders in the Department of Public Safety (DPS), he secured accreditation through the Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies for DPS in November of 2020, the gold standard in public safety accreditation.
“It has been an honor and a pleasure to work with the amazing staff and leadership in Campus Safety and Emergency Services,” says Callisto. “It has likewise been a privilege to work at a world-class university with wonderful students who are our world’s future leaders. Having served in law enforcement, safety and risk management for four decades, I’m ready for the next phase of life with my wife, spending winters out west with our daughter and summers here in Central New York with our sons.”
