Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi '95, who has a bachelor's degree in government, delivered the annual Pi Sigma Alpha lecture on public service, on Tuesday, April 25 in LaRiviere Living and Learning Center.
“It is great to be back on campus, although I hardly recognize the place,” remarked Cocchi. “The University has grown so much with so many new buildings. I’m so proud to call myself an alum of this great institution.”
Cocchi won the election for Sheriff of Hampden County in November 2016 after a 23-year career in the sheriff’s department. As sheriff, Cocchi oversees jails in Ludlow and Chicopee, as well as satellite locations in Springfield and Holyoke. He also manages programs that address drug addiction, monitor individuals on probation or parole, and serve the needs of newly released inmates. The Sheriff’s Department supervises approximately 1800 offenders in various levels of security, both pre-trial detainees and individuals with sentences of two and a half years or less.
The Department of History and Political Science, and the University’s Sigma Nu chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, the Political Science Honor Society, sponsored the lecture.
