THIS MAGAZINE WAS PUBLISHED TO SHARE INFORMATION ON STUDIES AND ISSUES REGARDING DIVERSITY AMONGPOLICE DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES

Volume 1/Issue 1 - Spring 2015

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CONTRIBUTORS

Mitchell Wells Kiara RansomCriminal Justice, May 2015 Criminal Justice, May 2015Bachelor's Degree Candidate Bachelor's Degree Candidate

Kiatah Blalock Shanae WhiteCriminal Justice/Psychology Criminal Justice, SeniorMay 2015 Bachelor’s Degree CandidateBachelor’s Degree Candidate

Christopher Pressley Valeretta RobertsCriminal Justice, December 2015 Criminal Justice, SeniorBachelor’s Degree Candidate Bachelor’s Degree Candidate

Antionette CoxCriminal Justice, SeniorBachelor’s Degree Candidate

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract………………………………………………..……………3

Introduction………………………………………………………...3

Literature Review………………………………………………..3-5

Editorial…………………………………………………………….6

A Professional Interview…………………………………………7-8

Emerging Technology……………………………………………….9

Info-graphic…………………………………………………………10

Policy Analysis……………………………………………………11-13

Reference Page……………………………………………………14-15

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ABSTRACTBy Shanae White

The purpose of this study is to examine the

diversity among police department employees.

More specifically focusing on the difference

between race, ethnicity, and gender. In past history

there has been a strain on diversifying police

agencies. Females have been known to not qualify

for the position because of the male standards.

Genders has not been the only factor that is affected

by this problem, ethnicity and race also is affected.

This study shows how race among police

department employees are interpreted into police

agencies’.

INTRODUCTIONBy: Shanae White

According to Alderden, Farrell, &

Rosenbaum (2011) in the last few decades there has

been a particular emphasis on diversifying the

police workforce. Much of these efforts have

resulted in a significant increase in proportion of

police officers that are female or racial and ethnic

minorities. Archbold, Hassell, & Stichman (2010)

found the occupational culture of policing is so

entrenched that policing remains a very masculine

profession, although some argue that increased

diversification and contemporary policing

philosophies have begun to erode many of the

values that typify traditional police culture (Chan,

1996, 2001, 2007).

Why do diversity matters? Well according to

the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights

Division Office of Justice Programs & the U.S.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

(2015) diversity can be a crucial element in

establishing and expanding trust between law

enforcement and the community. Workforce

diversity may also have positive effects on law

enforcement agencies; making them less insular and

more receptive to change. Also diversity is

considered a key ingredient for the successful

implementation of community-based policing, in

which law enforcement agencies collaborate with

citizens’ groups to address public safety issues

(Keller, Lim, & Matthies, 2012 ).

Image courtesy of diversityinc.com

LITERATURE REVIEWBy: Shanae White

According to U.S. Department of Justice

Civil Rights Division Office of Justice Programs &

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

(2015), recent events have placed a spotlight on the

lack of diversity within police departments and

other law enforcement agencies across the nation.

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Now more than ever agencies are looking to fill

their ranks with a diverse officer corps that reflects

the populations they serve. This includes

women and those from a variety of racial and ethnic

backgrounds as well as other minority groups

(Discovering Policing, 2015).

Theories on women in the workplace

suggest that women may experience more discord,

and less harmony, in departments where they

represent a smaller proportion of the workforce

(Archbold, Stichman, & Hassell, 2010). In 1987,

females accounted for almost 8 percent of police

officers while racial and ethnic minorities accounted

for nearly 15 percent of police officers. By 2003,

these figures had increased to 11 percent and 24

percent, respectively. Large agencies in particular

have been successful in recruiting both female and

racial and ethnic minorities (Alderden, Farrell,

Skogan, & Rosenbaum, (2011).

Kentucky Commission on Human Rights

(2006) found that it was not until 1968 that the first

female officers were given patrol duties just as their

male counterparts had. A few years later, women

were finally protected from discrimination in the

public sector, and therefore police departments, as

Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act was

expanded. The breakdown of gender roles has made

it possible for women to enter into traditionally

male-dominated fields.Women who account for

one-half of the work force, make up only 9% of the

law enforcement officers in the Commonwealth of

Kentucky. Also they found interpretation of the race

and ethnicity results is more complicated than other

characteristics. When tabulated as a whole, it

appears the percentage of African American or

Black officers accurately match the population.

African American or Black officers make up 7.30%

of the force statewide.

Image courtesy of reportingtexas.com

Research Questions and Results

According to a survey conducted by

Alderden, M., et.al (2011) there were various

perspectives that were conducted for each diversity

perspective by agency size. The first perspective

found officers from small agencies report more fair

treatment than officers from large agencies. The

average scores for police officers from small

agencies were significantly higher than those from

large agencies for the fair treatment and learning

indexes. This indicates that officers from small

agencies rated their agencies more positively in

terms of fair treatment, being supportive, and

valuing officer input and experiences.

The second perspective were that officers

from small agencies report more socializing

between officers regardless of race, ethnicity, or

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gender and hearing fewer derogatory comments.

Officers from small agencies had lower average

scores for the socializing and workplace

environment variables. This indicates that officers

from smaller agencies were less likely than those

from large agencies to believe officers only

socialized with individuals of their same race,

ethnicity, or gender and or report hearing jokes or

other derogatory comments about officers of Image courtesy of vcstar.com

different races and ethnicities, females, or

homosexuals.

The third perspective differences in

perceptions of officers working in small and large

agencies may be due to actual experiences with

workforce diversification. Although officers from

small police agencies report more positive

perceptions of diversity these agencies were also

less diverse racially, ethnically, and by gender.

Thus, officers in small agencies may have less

experience dealing with diversity issues. For

instance, white male officers may perceive their

agencies as both fair and valuing their input because

they are members of the dominate work culture.

The last perspective found that officers

from small agencies are more satisfied with their

job and department overall. A significantly higher

percentage of officers from small agencies than

large agencies reported being satisfied with their job

and the department overall. Figure 1.4 also indicates

that officers, regardless of agency size, report being

satisfied with their job more so than the departments

where they work.

Summary

The results of the survey conducted by

Gauthier, F.J. and Sousa, W. (2008) state

additionally, some women believe that their

colleagues have lower expectations of them, and

that some officers have not wanted to partner with

them because of their gender. Also it indicates that

female officers believe they have less respect within

the organization. These findings suggest that many

female officers perceive unfair treatment based on

gender perhaps a reflection of a historically male-

dominated culture within policing.

Even though there is still strain between

gender among police department employees, things

are trying to improve for female employees. Based

on Kentucky Commission on Human Rights (2006)

across the country, law enforcement agencies like

those in Kentucky are working to diversify their

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sworn officers. Many locales are using a two-

pronged approach to fast-track minority recruitment

and retention: a mixture of training and policy or

legislative reform. Communities and law

enforcement departments must develop curriculum

or policy change appropriate for the unique and

demanding aspects of policing. Recent analysis has

suggested that traditional diversity programs,

designed for the general public or private industry,

do not work well for police audiences.

U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights

Division Office of Justice Programs & the U.S.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

(2015) found a diverse police department is also

less likely to be insular, and therefore can be more

receptive to change.

EditorialBy Kiatah Black

Women Police Officers….Where?

For many years women where not allowed

to be police officers, even if they met all of the

qualifications besides being a man. Law

enforcement is a male dominated work field and

women were to able to consider working in law

enforcement until 1972 when a US Constitutional

Amendment to Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights

Act was established (Seklecki & Paynich, 2007).

Even after this amendment there is still a

large difference between the number of men and

women in law enforcement positions. Current

statistics state that women only comprise about

12.7% of all sworn law enforcement officers

(Lonsway, Carrington, Aguirre, Wood, Moore,

Harrington, Smeal & Spillar, 2002). There is

overwhelming evidence that woman and men are

both equally capable of completing police duties but

there is widespread bias in the hiring process,

selection process, and recruitment policies keep the

number of women in law enforcement low. If

women do purse and law enforcement and make it

through recruitment they still faces things such as

discrimination, harassment, and intimidation,

especially as they move up the ranks (Lonsway et

al., 2002).

Research has shown that women police

officers contribute significantly in reducing the

widespread excessive force and corruption scandals

that are currently plaguing law enforcement today.

This same research states that women use a style of

policing that relies on less physical force and more

communication skills, which results in them being

better t defusing potentially violent confrontations

(Lonsway et al., 2002)

Knowing that women are fully capable of

completing the duties of a police officer just as well

as a man, if not better in some situations, means that

they need to be given more opportunities in being

able to move up in rank without being discriminated

against, talked about, or bullied just because they

are a woman. Having more women out in the field

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will help reduce the stigma of police officers being

confrontational and argumentative.

More women may choose to enter the field

of law enforcement if they feel welcome and

depending on if the police department that they are

interested in is large or small they may not feel

welcome. Discrimination against women becoming

police officers has to stop as it is against the law

that is stated in the constitution. Police departments

find loop holes like making individuals take extra

performance test and things such a that, that will

eliminate many women out of the pool of officers to

recruit even though they are very capable of the job

(Lonsway et al., 2002)

Something has to change and what that change

needs to be, we are not sure but surly something has

to be done so that women are looked at being

equally qualified for the job. Once this happens we

will be able to see more diversity in police

departments and communities prospering as a result

of it.

Image courtesy of sanduskyregister.com

InterviewBy Valeretta Roberts

Interview with Patrol Officer Nikei Fields Wyattof the Town of Chapel Hill Police Department

VR: Could you describe one of yourtypical workdays?

NW: A typical workday for me would be, myshift starts at 6:00 am, and we have our shiftbriefing in which we discuss any events thatare going on within the Town, any important

calls that happened overnight or since lastworked, gather my car. I am generallyassigned to Area 4 so I ride around in themornings through different neighborhoodsin this area, checking bus stops also makingsure that people are stopping for buses, thenride around all day and respond to calls aspeople call me.

VR: How long have you been with thePolice Department and what skills arerequired in your positions, and what isyour education background?

NW: I have been with the Town of ChapelHill Police Department for 9 years. Skillthat are required for my position is you haveto have people skills, you have to know howto talk to people, you have to have writingskills generally that’s a lot of what we dotalking and writing, writing reports prettymuch on everything that you go to, have tobe able to be able to pass the Police OfficerPhysical Abilities test, which is just aphysical test doing obstacles, and pass thestate exam. I have a Bachelor’s degree inForensic Science, a Master’s degree inAdministrative Justice and security and I amworking on my PhD in Criminal Justice.

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VR: Are there many females and/orminority people applying for lawenforcement positions?

NW: If not why do you feel they are notapplying. As far Law enforcement in generalI really don’t know but I do know in theTown of Chapel Hill we have approximately120 sworn and of that 120 sworn only about25 are females. Sworn Black females wehave 3.

VR: What experiences have you hadworking with others with differentbackground than your own?

NW: In addition to being a Black femaleofficer I am a Muslim police and the onlyMuslim police officer in the Chapel Hill, Iwas not a Muslim when I got hired here andI recently reverted to Islam and it’s been anadjustment for everyone pretty muchespecially after being a Muslim post 9/11 inAmerica it’s a little different some peoplehave a hard time dealing with it and somejust don’t deal with it as far

as the community the Muslim communitylike to see me around others particularlywhy I am covered even when it is hot outsidefor the most part it’s been okay.

VR: In working in law enforcement, whatareas cause diversity among lawenforcement officers?

NW: We have a pretty good workingrelationship with the CHPD we do have afew Hispanics and we tend to get along wellbecause it is a small town and everyone getalong pretty well.

VR: What does it mean to you to have acommitment to diversity? How would youdevelop and apply your commitment.

NW: Having a commitment to Diversity tome means being committed to working withother people and working with otherreligions, ethnicities, culture background todevelop that I would talk to anyone who willlisten if they have questions as far why Idress the way I dress and why I do some ofthe things I do I will talk with them about itand explain it the best way I know how.

Image courtesy of richmondstandard.com

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EMERGING TECHNOLOGYBy Antionette Cox

Image courtesy of wkyc.com

The Law Enforcement Recruitment Toolkit

This emerging technology was created by

the International Association of Chiefs of Police, in

collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice

and the Office of Community Oriented Policing

Services (COPS). The purpose of the Law

Enforcement Recruitment Toolkit is to "assist

agencies with their recruitment efforts. The Law

Enforcement Recruitment Toolkit comprises four

reports, each focusing on a different area of

recruitment:

1. Police Recruitment: Foundation

Concepts- Provides an overview of the current state

of police staffing and a summary of common

recruitment obstacles and how to overcome them.

2. Recruiting for Diversity- Outlines the

importance of diversity in law enforcement and

strategies for effective minority recruitment.

3. Agency Collaboration in Police Officer

Recruitment and Selection - Contains case studies

of successful regional and intra-agency recruitment

collaboratives across the country.

4. Community Partnerships in Police

Recruitment - Discusses why and how to engage the

community and civic organizations in the

recruitment and selection process."

This technology will help to advance the

field of criminal justice and the diversity among

police department employees because it goes to the

root of the problem: recruitment. If you recruit a

diverse staff then that automatically improves the

problems with the diversity among police

department employees.

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INFOGRAPHICSBy Kiara Ransom

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POLICY ANALYSISBy Chris Pressley and Mitchell Wells

Background

Police departments have had little success in

getting a more diverse police force. Diversity in

your police force can lead to many things, such as

increase in community policing relatable ethnic

groups, and it allows for citizens to feel represented

by their own people. Ferguson is a perfect example

of a community who has a population that has a

different majority ethnic group from their police

force. In Ferguson there are only 3 black police

officers, yet the population there is only 60%. It is

difficult to know whether officers will help with the

tension, but the experience of police departments all

over the country suggest that a diverse police force

is better able to serve its community than a non

diverse one.

Image courtesy of policeone.com

Extent of Problems

San Francisco has revived an amazing

program to help in the fight to diversities their

police force. The police force will recruit high

school students from violent neighborhoods in the

area. Thanks to Sales force CEO Marc Benioff who

is willingly donating 1.5 million over the next three

years to the program, the city will also match his

offer, and he has other CEO’s for another match of

1.5 million.

The program will pay around 20,000 a year

to 30 recent high school graduates from violent

neighborhoods and low income homes. The

students will in exchange have to dedicate 20 hours

a week to work with the Police Department, while

taking 12 units of college courses a semester. Once

21 the students have the choice to attend the police

academy to become an officer.

Alternatives

There are several policy alternatives that

resonate as possibilities in regards to the San

Francisco program that offers $20,000 annually for

three years to young adults in exchange for meeting

educational requirements and working 12 hours a

week in the department. However, we have

concluded that this policy is an excellent start to

combatting an increasingly complex issue involving

police departments across the country failing to hire

officers that represent the community in which the

department resides. Therefore, one possible must be

to do nothing and let this program run its course in

order to determine what type of sustainable change

may come about. However, there are certainly

various other alternatives that can be implemented

either as additions to or as completely separate

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options to the aforementioned San Francisco

program.

All possible additions or replacements to the

program that is the subject of this discussion would

most likely require an increased amount of man-

hours to legislate and taxpayer money to fund. This

is because this San Francisco program is revived

from a previous program (so it does not require

many man hours to create and legislate), and it is

predominantly funded via a 1.5 million dollar

partnership with Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff (so

it comes at a drastically reduced cost to the

taxpayer.) However, for the sake of the discussion,

our research does provide several alternatives that

also diversify police departments that are currently

unrepresentative of their respective communities.

One particular alternative that we discovered

during our research is actually a proposed policy

that was postulated by James Knowles, the current

mayor of Ferguson, Missouri. Knowles proposed

increasing the stipends from $100 to $300 to

officers who reside within the city limit. This

proposition would theoretically increase the

likelihood that officers in the police department

actually begin to represent the neighborhoods in

which they serve to protect. Ideally, with a more

representative police department, citizens will relate

to their officers to a greater extent and community

policing can swing into full effect. As discussed

previously, all of the solutions that we can discuss

will have both benefits and downfalls. In terms of

this Ferguson proposition, a benefit would be that it

would increase the possibility of having a more

representative, and thus more effective, city police

department. On the contrary, a downfall of this

proposition is that the increased financial

contributions will ultimately lessen the police

department’s financial budget and likely increase

taxpayers contributions down the line.

Another alternative that was relatively

prevalent in our research was the opportunity for

police departments across the country to make their

application process more user friendly to “non-

traditional” applicants, often described as women

and minorities. Ways to operationalize this concept

include posing application questions in a positive

manner and even waving some of the automatic

disqualifications that may cause certain members of

the community to abstain from applying. Benefits of

this alternative, similarly to the previous option,

would be increasing the likelihood of creating a

more representative and inclusive police

department. Drawbacks to this concept do not

necessarily include increased financial

commitments, but do include the possibility of

completely revamping application policies (requires

increased man hours) as well as the possibility of

not actually creating a more inclusive department.

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Image courtesy of improvingpolice.wordpress.com

Recommendation

After careful consideration and impactful

research, we have decided that the more effective

and efficient option would be to maintain status-quo

with the San Francisco program discussed in the

beginning of this policy analysis. Because of the

fact that this program, although revamped, is

relatively untested in modern day America, it seems

that allowing this program to continue with the

allotted 1.5 million dollars is the best option at this

time. After utilizing the 1.5 million dollar initial

investment, we should have an acceptable view of

the programs effectiveness and efficiency. If the

opportunity arises for the program to be modified

(or even implementing other alternatives into this

program) then we would theoretically be able to do

so after an initial test run. Conclusively, due to the

lack of substantial risk combined with the relatively

high chance of influence and success, we believe

that implementing this San Francisco program is the

correct recommendation at this time.

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