Tolland Native Named Farmington Police Department's Officer of the Year

Editor’s note: We published this story earlier in the week, but here it is again in case you missed it.

It’s been a pretty good year for Farmington Police Officer Joanna Blumetti.

She and her partner received an award for a case they worked, she received the Friends of Farmington award, and she was also named the Farmington Police Officer of the Year.

Blumetti is a 16-year veteran who is assigned to Farmington High School as the School Resource Officer and was recognized for her overall work with the youth in Farmington.

To sign up for Tolland breaking news alerts and more, click here.

She participates in a mentoring program for at risk youths, she conducts trainings and programs for Farmington High School students, and she sits on the Juvenile Review Board in Farmington – where they seek alternatives to arrest for first time juvenile offenders.

Blumetti, who grew up in Tolland, is also a Hostage Negotiator on the Regional Emergency Services Team.

In order to receive the Officer of the Year Award, the recipient must be nominated, and Blumetti was nominated by a sergeant and a detective separately.

“It’s very flattering because I was nominated by my peers,” she said.

Blumetti didn’t take the “traditional” route to becoming a police officer. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Connecticut in Human Development and Family Relations. From there, she went to graduate school, also at UConn, and received a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy.

After graduate school, she was going the social services route when she saw that the Farmington Police Department was hiring. She was hired in September of 1999.

She was on patrol for several years and five years ago became the SRO at Farmington High School.

“For me, it was a perfect fit,” she said.

At the school, Blumetti works closely with the counseling department, talks to the kids about timely issues – and helps them work through them, and teaches students in the classroom.

“My favorite part is getting into the classrooms and trying to educate these kids and keep them safe,” she said. “That’s my primary goal. These programs are teaching them that if they do this behavior, they can get in trouble, but really, I just want to keep them safe.”

Blumetti will soon be reassigned to patrol duty – so that another officer will have the opportunity to work in the school – but she values all of the great relationships that she’s made with the kids over the past five years.

“I’ve loved what I’ve been doing for the past five years,” she said.

Photo courtesy of the Farmington Police Department.