Meet UCOP’s Oakland security team
February 7, 2023 •
We’ve added more members to the UCOP security team at the Oakland Franklin-Broadway campus since our last Link update. These staff are here to help ensure that all members of our community can enjoy a safe and secure workplace. Please take a moment to introduce yourself and welcome them to the UCOP team!
Security officers
Our uniformed security officers are the core of our public safety ambassador team.
Security Officer Michael Buchanan
Michael Buchanan was born and raised in Oakland, and is the oldest of three siblings. He graduated from Castlemont High School in 2010 and attended Langston University shortly after. He then returned to the Bay Area to pursue his degree closer to home. Michael is currently working on his bachelor’s degree in business administration through Arizona State University (online). He hopes to graduate in December of 2023, then advance his career at UC and pursue a master’s degree. Over the past six years, Michael has grown his experience in the customer service and security fields, leading up to his position at UC. He had his first daughter in 2015, and now has four children. He loves spending his time with his family at home and outdoors.
Security Officer Damien Holmes
Damien Holmes was born and raised in South Berkeley. He’s an outgoing guy with a lot of hobbies. He enjoys motorcycling, including group riding. One of his current goals is to experience the country and national parks while motorcycle camping. He’s always ready to help and enjoys being part of the UCOP team.
Security Officer Carlos Jackson
Carlos Jackson is married and has four children, three boys and a daughter. He loves to play rock and roll worship music and enjoys spending time outdoors — camping, fishing and hiking in the mountains. Carlos is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in pastoral counseling. He is thrilled to be part of the public safety ambassador team!
Security Officer Mohamed Mahmoud
Mohamed Mahmoud has had an illustrious career as a U.S. National Soccer referee, for which he was honored as referee of the year in 2007. He is also an accomplished musician, specializing in Middle Eastern and African music. He is originally from Egypt, where he served in the Egyptian Navy and held specialty assignments in the Security Department. Mohamed enjoys fishing, spending time with his family and participating in many local and national music events.
Security Officer Ricky Martinez
Ricky Martinez was born and raised in Orange County, California. A health and fitness aficionado, he has enjoyed boxing for the past six years. In his spare time, Ricky likes to socialize, study industrial history, listen to music and collect jazz records. He has been with the UCSF team for three months; in the future, he plans to pursue a law enforcement career.
Security Officer Weldon Miles
Weldon Miles transferred to UCSF security from UC Berkeley in September 2022. He served four years with UC Berkeley — most of which was spent at UCOP. Prior to UC, he was a special forces operative at Oracle Arena and RingCentral Coliseum. (Go Warriors and goodbye and good luck to the Raiders!) Weldon learned a great deal about providing excellent security while working alongside entities he refers to as “alphabet soup” (the CIA, FBI and DHS). He additionally worked with local authorities during his five-year NBA finals appearances, for which he was not on the court but very close to it! He loves to travel and spend time with family and friends.
Security Officer Jan Nelson
Jan Nelson (pronounced “Yan”) is three-quarters English and one-quarter Irish. He was born in Chester, a small Roman town in Cheshire County, England, and moved to California in 2001. Jan loves animals and has a dog named Hades who is an 85-pound Pacific Bulldog — a 50/50 mix of British Bulldog and Olde English Bulldog, with 100% slobber and stinkiness! Jan is a motorcycle enthusiast and has been riding since he was 2 years old. He also enjoys playing rugby and cooking. Jan has future aspirations of entering law enforcement. He looks forward to meeting his new UCOP colleagues.
Security Officer Micah Parker
Micah Parker was born in Oakland, California, and has lived in various cities across the Bay Area and a couple of cities in the Central Valley. He enjoys spending time with his family, gaming, cutting hair, listening to music and writing. He has experience in both health care and tech security. Micah is glad to be at UCOP and grateful to be working amongst such great people!
Security Officer Steven Poblete
Steven Poblete was born in Virginia and is a former military brat. He’s been working for UC a little over 11 years and feels that it’s been an awesome experience. He believes that UC is very diverse, that the staff is great and that UCOP is a great environment to work in. In his free time, Steven enjoys martial arts (Muay Thai, Jiu Jitsu, Shotokan, Eskrima), weight training, mountain biking, cooking, video editing and being a computer junkie.
Security Officer Danae Richardson
Danae Richardson calls Sacramento home. She grew up in the Central Valley, in the Ceres/Modesto area. Since childhood, Danae has aspired to be a chef, specifically a pastry chef. She studied culinary arts and worked in corporate dining for seven years. Like many Californians, the pandemic caused Danae to pursue a new career path. Her strengths and interests in hospitality have dovetailed seamlessly into her new path in security and safety. Danae enjoys engaging in sports, especially swimming and basketball, and she is an enthusiastic Raiders and Lakers fan. Her favorite times are spent baking and fishing with her father. Danae is excited to be working at UCOP and looks forward to serving our patrons and staff. She is thrilled to be part of the UCOP team.
Security Officer Jacen Zuasola
Jacen Zuasola is Filipino and Guamanian. He was born in Los Angeles and raised throughout the Bay Area. Being a continued martial artist of 15 years, he teaches at a school as a second-degree black belt. He’s a car enthusiast, music enthusiast and enjoys socializing with the public. Jacen is currently studying for his bachelor’s degree in radiology to become an X-ray technician. He’s always open to new opportunities and ready to work with the UCOP team.
For questions about security at UCOP, please contact Melissa Collins, program manager, or Phil Van Saun, director, Risk, Security and Resilience.
Sworn law enforcement officers
Sergeant Frank Ruiz and Lieutenant Wailun Shiu are our two sworn and uniformed law enforcement officers. They are both part of the UCSF Police Department. Although UCOP’s Oakland campus has not included uniformed officers in the past, their presence allows us to better serve the UCOP community by providing a clear visual sign that law enforcement is on active duty on our campus. Frank and Wailun are available to liaise with local police, when needed, as well as to assist any victims of crime and help with emergency response.
Sergeant Frank Ruiz
Sergeant Frank Ruiz is the eldest of 12 brothers and sisters. Originally from Chicago, he also spent time in Germany and Colombia as a child. Frank’s career began in the hospitality industry, in a family-financed restaurant called the Wild Onion. He then spent time working in hotels. He began his second career in law enforcement at the San Francisco State University Police Department. In 2016, he joined the UCSF Police Department, where he was promoted to sergeant in 2019. Frank enjoys working and spending time with the people and communities he serves. His focus at UCOP is to engage with staff and the larger community while ensuring their continued safety.
Lieutenant Wailun Shiu
Lieutenant Wailun Shiu loves to be with his family at the happiest place on Earth — Disneyland! Wailun has enjoyed a 23-year career in law enforcement. He began with 15 years of service in a municipal police agency, then served as interim deputy chief of police for the San Francisco State University Police Department before coming to the UCSF Police Department in October 2021. His experience includes eight years of service in higher-ed policing, six years in management and two in executive management. He currently serves as commander for East Bay UCSF locations, as well as other remote sites. Wailun is excited to be a part of this new endeavor supporting a great team at UCOP.
Tags: Oakland, security officers
Dear UCOP Oakland Security Team: This is such a great way to learn about your very important, needed and very welcome presence. Despite the current cancel climate, law and security enforcement are important and necessary. Where a great team like yourselves represent the majority good who protect and serve. And I gratefully thank you.
Dear UCOP: This has been one of the most thoughtful engagement ideas by introducing this very interesting group of people withholding positions in such an important area. Engagement timing of this is notable especially after more recent policing misconduct, abuse and murder of citizens. Thank you for this very refreshing and thoughtful write-up. It’s so important to frame a positive light on what is good about the women and men doing good works. Believe this helps build confidence and rethinking around why we need each other. And the men and women who go into this field to serve our campuses and overall communities locally and nationally.