OSU Police Department earns reaccreditation

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Oklahoma State University’s Police Department is leading the way in Oklahoma by undergoing a tough assessment and accreditation process every three years.

OSU Police Chief Michael Robinson said the department recently earned its second reaccreditation from the Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police.

"We believe in accountability, and this assessment is a good way to ensure that we are always operating in a professional manner,” Robinson said. “Accreditation has been well-established in other fields, such as medicine and education for many years, and we’re glad to be among those who are pioneering this effort in our own field.”

OSUPD was the first in the state to become accredited in 1998, the first year the OACP offered the program. Robinson, who served as the former police chief at The Village Police Department, landed accreditation for it not long after OSU led the way.

Robinson said 10 accredited law enforcement agencies are now statewide, including the Stillwater Police Department. Robinson recently accepted a plaque on behalf of his department that recognized this latest reaccreditation. The plaque was presented by OACP accreditation commissioners Jim Spearman of Norman and Paul Kroutter of Broken Arrow.

Robinson said that each law enforcement agency is assessed based on more than 190 professional standards in areas such as personnel, operations and administration to be approved for the three-year reaccreditation.

“From verifying constitutional compliance in matters such as police pursuits and evidence handling to direct questioning of officers while on patrol to assess their working knowledge of standards and directives, it’s an extensive process,” he said.

Each department is also required to have written directives on file addressing all standards as well as documentation proving that they are operating within the guidelines established by those written directives.