Former Youngstowner, OSHP chief resign state posts

Guzman earned a degree from YSU and served on the city school board.

COLUMBUS — Two top-ranking state law-enforcement officials — one of whom was raised in Youngstown — submitted their resignations Friday.

Henry Guzman, director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, and Col. Richard Collins, superintendent of the Ohio State Highway Patrol, announced their decisions to Gov. Ted Strickland.

Both have served in their positions since 2007. Strickland appointed Guzman, and Guzman named Collins as patrol superintendent.

According to Strickland’s office, “Director Guzman informed the governor yesterday [Thursday] of his desire to move on to another role in the administration and the need to initiate a fresh start for the department.”

Later Thursday, Collins agreed to submit his resignation so that new leadership at the highway patrol “could join in the effort to have the department and the patrol move forward collaboratively.”

Both will remain in their positions as the search begins for replacements. The administration hopes to have new leaders in place within weeks.

“The governor believes that both Director Guzman and Col. Collins are both accomplished professionals and strong leaders,” said Strickland spokeswoman Allison Kolodziej.

“But sometimes even the most effective leaders can struggle to develop truly satisfying working relationships. That is why the governor believes that a fresh start and new leadership will be the best direction [for the Department of Public Safety and the state highway patrol] as a whole,” she said.

Guzman, formerly of Youngstown, headed eight divisions in the department, including the state highway patrol.

He formerly was director of the Columbus Department of Public Service and was director of Cleveland’s Department of Public Safety from 1999-2002.

A native of Villiaba, Puerto Rico, Guzman was raised in Youngstown. He is an Army veteran, earning a Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for valor for his service in the Vietnam War.

He was the first director of Organizacion Civica y Cultural Hispana Americana or OCCHA, a Hispanic social-service agency in Youngstown, and was the first Latino member appointed, then elected, to the Youngstown Board of Education.

He received his bachelor of science degree in criminal justice from Youngstown State University in 1977 and pursued a year of graduate study in the master’s degree program of the Antioch Law School in Washington, D.C., where he was awarded a Certificate in Equal Opportunity Law.

He is a 2001 graduate of the Leadership Cleveland Class and received certification in the Senior Executives of State and Local Government from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Guzman and his wife, Nydia, have four grown children.

Collins headed the highway patrol under Guzman. He has served in the patrol for nearly three decades and is a native of Marion.

mkovac@dixcom.com