Ohio State nationally recognized for meeting best practices in law enforcement

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State University Police Division (OSUPD) received its second accreditation award (first reaccreditation) from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA). The national honor was announced Saturday during the 2016 CALEA Conference in Baltimore, Maryland.

OSUPD is currently one of approximately 70 university agencies in the country to meet CALEA’s best practices of law enforcement standards.

“The Ohio State University Police Division has a uniquely tailored approach focusing on both safety and education,” said OSUPD Chief Craig Stone. “CALEA accreditation exemplifies our commitment to the safety of our campus community and shows we hold our officers to the highest standards in law enforcement.”

OSUPD first earned CALEA accreditation in 2013. Applying agencies must comply with 188 standards in order to gain accredited status. The voluntary process to gain accreditation, which is a highly prized recognition of public safety professional excellence, includes verification by the assessors that OSUPD meets the commission’s state-of-the-art standards. As such, a team of assessors from CALEA visited Ohio State in March to examine all aspects of OSUPD policy and procedures, management, operations and support services.

CALEA accreditation lasts for four years, during which the agency must submit annual reports and other documents demonstrating continued compliance with those standards under which it was initially accredited.

In July, OSUPD adopted and implemented state standards established by the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board to further strengthen its commitment to the safety of the Ohio State community. The state standards are designed to strengthen relations between Ohio police agencies and the communities they serve and address use of force, agency recruitment and hiring.

For more information about OSUPD, visit http://dps.osu.edu. To learn more about CALEA, visit http://www.calea.org.