When Christopher Ortiz graduated from Glen Cove High School in 1992, several local police officers repeatedly encouraged him to take the civil service exam.
Among them was Detective Sgt. Rob Kamaski, who had coached Ortiz on the junior varsity football team, and Detective Lt. John Nagle, who lived near him.
“Take the police test, take the police test,” Ortiz recalled hearing.
Now Glen Cove’s police chief, Ortiz, 52, is delivering the same message to a new generation as the city accepts applications for its entry-level police officer exam. It is open to those ages 18 to 45, and registration must be completed by Sept. 11.
The department is looking particularly closely at local residents. Ortiz estimated that 85 percent of its 57 current officers grew up in the city, and roughly 80 percent graduated from Glen Cove High. “There’s a strong tradition of Glen Cove High School with the Glen Cove Police Department,” he said.
Deputy Police Chief Peter Di Maggio, 50, a 1994 GCHS graduate, said that officers with local roots bring a personal investment to the job. Their relatives may live in the city, their children may attend its schools, and they frequent the same businesses as the people they serve.
“When you do, you tend to go above and beyond,” DiMaggio said. “You’re invested in the community.”
Ortiz recalled patrolling School and Glen streets early in his career, and encountering young people late at night. His connections to their families often resolved potentially combustible situations.
“I went to high school with your mother,” Ortiz recalled telling them. “I went to high school with your father. You want me to tell them what you’re doing out here?” Usually, he said, that was enough to send them home.
Residents may not see everything officers do behind the scenes, Ortiz said. Growing up, he believed there was little crime in Glen Cove. After joining the department, he learned how much work went into creating that sense of security.
“That’s the perception we want people to have, that we do nothing,” he said. “But behind the scenes, we do everything.”
Applications are available from the city’s Civil Service Commission. Candidates can complete an application, submit it with the required fee and take the written exam, the first step in a lengthy selection process. Applicants must pass, but Ortiz advised candidates to aim for scores in the 90s, because the department hires only from among the highest-ranked candidates.
Those who advance must also complete a physical fitness test, a background investigation, a psychological evaluation, an interview and drug screening.
The exam focuses heavily on reading comprehension, Ortiz said. Candidates may be asked to interpret passages or remember details. A study guide is available on the city’s civil service website.
Ortiz advised candidates to begin exercising as soon as they decide to apply. When he started taking police exams, he ran two miles a day, and did push-ups and sit-ups as well. “You should put your full mind, body and soul into it, and get ready and prepare,” he said.
Di Maggio’s police career was unplanned. He was studying accounting when a friend offered to pay his application fee if he took the exam. He performed well, completed the selection process and accepted the job.
“It’s the best decision I’ve ever made,” he said.
Glen Cove and Long Beach are the only municipalities in Nassau County that administer their own police exams through independent civil service systems, Ortiz said. Glen Cove offers its exam every two years.
Ortiz encouraged 18-year-olds to take the exam even if they’re still working toward the 120 college credits required for appointment. Doing so can give them experience with the test while they complete their education.
Officer Darren Pittman, 40, understands the importance of persistence. The 2004 Glen Cove High graduate went on to earn a bachelor’s degree, then took the police exam in 2010, 2012 and 2014 before being hired in 2015 from the 2012 list.
Since 2017, he has taught fifth-graders as part of a department program covering drugs, alcohol, peer pressure, internet safety and decision-making. The program helps children to see officers as people while giving officers a chance to form lasting relationships with them, he said.
Pittman grew up in Glen Cove’s public housing and is raising his two children in the city. “To come from that, make it this far, go to college, get a degree, become a police officer and give back to my community,” Pittman said, “it’s one of the greatest things I’ve done in my life.”
Ortiz encouraged young residents to pursue their education and explore opportunities, but to consider returning home to serve. “We want you,” he said. “Spread your wings, but then look back home for a career when the time comes.”
