On July 30, 2016, the UMBC Police Department was awarded accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) for the quality of its personnel, policies, processes, and procedures.
CALEA is a national credentialing authority that reviews public safety services. UMBC joins several other University System of Maryland (USM) institutions that have become accredited by the organization.
“This exceptional acknowledgement reflects the quality and commitment of our police department and its leadership,” said Vice President of Administration and Finance Lynne Schaefer. “We have one of the finest departments in the System and the state, and this accreditation reaffirms that.”
During the three-year review, the accrediting body looked at the campus’s effectiveness and adherence to industry standards. The review team analyzed the department’s policies and procedures by reviewing its documentation and interviewing faculty, staff, and students from the campus.
“Being acknowledged by CALEA as an institution that upholds the highest standards of excellence is an incredible honor,” said Chief of Police Mark Sparks. “This exhaustive accreditation process presented a great opportunity for our department to review its processes and procedures, and it helped us to recognize ways in which we can continue to support the unique needs of our campus community.”
An important part of the accreditation process includes identifying ways in which the department plans to advance its mission to support members of the campus community. Implementing these approaches, of which there were nearly 200, is integral in maintaining compliance with CALEA. Some key areas identified include fair enforcement across all populations on campus, overall department diversity, and systems for reviewing and reporting on officer activity and behavior.
The CALEA accreditation team will visit the campus again in 2020 to review the department’s progress on its commitments.
