Maris Herold Promoted to Serve as the University of Cincinnati Police Division's (UCPD) New Police Chief

• Problem-oriented policing and problem solving
• Data analysis and evidence-based policing
  
• Police-community relations
• Diversity, equity in policing, and fair and effective crime-reduction strategies
• Innovative police training, including use of force de-escalation training
  

Chief Herold first came to UC by means of a national search in 2016 to serve as the police department’s assistant chief. Her promotion comes with the unanimous approval and support from the UC Office of Safety and Reform's Community Advisory Council (CAC), which is chaired by the Honorable John West, retired judge for the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas. Herold also received strong support from UCPD’s internationally recognized external monitoring team, Exiger, along with many UC students, faculty and staff, including UCPD officers.

UC’s Vice President for Safety and Reform Robin Engel noted, “I am proud to reintroduce Maris Herold to our community as UCPD’s new police chief.  Her collaborative leadership style emphasizes the implementation of problem solving and evidence-based policing strategies with empathy and compassion to those she serves and those she leads. I am confident that her strong leadership, coupled with her integrity, intellect and innovative approach, will further accelerate the significant progress we have made in our police reform efforts.” Engel added that Chief Herold will continue to build on the strong relationships she’s already established with university students, faculty, staff and the local community as well as UCPD’s officers and staff.

“It’s a privilege to serve the UCPD, our university, and community in this leadership role” said Herold. "I plan to draw from my experience in both campus and municipal policing to develop and promote innovative policing strategies, while continuing to enhance UCPD’s significant progress. The safety of our students, faculty, staff, visitors, and surrounding residents continues to be a primary goal that will be strengthened through enhanced community outreach and partnerships. I am impressed with the dedication and commitment to continuous improvement demonstrated by our UCPD officers, and I will continue to provide state-of-the-art training and enhanced career opportunities to them. I also plan to work with our community partners to develop a comprehensive recruitment strategy to further diversify our agency.”

Herold's nearly two years of experience at UCPD is capped by nearly 25 years of previous experience with the Cincinnati Police Department (CPD) in a variety of leadership roles, including service as Patrol Special Project Captain and District Four Commander, a district which borders the University of Cincinnati. Importantly, in her former roles within the Cincinnati Police Department, Herold worked as part of the team responsible for implementing the department’s historic Collaborative Agreement.

During her tenure at CPD, she developed an evidence-based, city-wide violence reduction program. As part of that model, Herold coordinated the collection and analysis of intelligence data, the participation of city departments and resident/business associations to advance strategic safety efforts. She also carried direct responsibility for police operations and supervision serving 10 neighborhoods with over 85,000 residents.

She has presented on these areas of expertise at the International Association of Chiefs of Police, at the Problem-Oriented Policing Conference (sponsored by the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing), at the University of Sheffield-United Kingdom, the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York and more.

In her new role, Chief Herold will report to UC’s Director of Public Safety Jim Whalen, who stated, “In selecting to promote Maris Herold to the permanent role as chief, UCPD will benefit from a combination of skill sets that are very much in demand nationally among top policing leadership positions. UCPD will be led by an individual with both campus as well as local, urban law enforcement experience. Candidates with both sets of experiences are rare. In addition, she enhances our range and diversity as a department, something difficult to find and recruit but very much in demand on all campuses and in all communities.”

The appointment of Chief Herold will continue a recent national trend of selecting strong female leaders for the top job in police agencies, during a time when rebuilding policing-community relations while reducing crime remains a high priority. Women are one of the most underrepresented groups in American policing, with only 12 percent of sworn police officers who are women, despite comprising 51 percent of the U.S. population.

Prior to being named to her role of permanent chief today, Herold had served as interim chief since November 2017.