Building trust through policing
Photos by Evan Krape January 03, 2025
UD Police completed a two-year trust-building campaign aimed at better supporting the University and Newark communities
The University of Delaware Police Department is staffed 24/7 across 365 days each year. When there is an emergency on campus, you can trust that UDPD will be there to assist.
UD Police took a major step toward enhancing the level of trust between the department and the University and Newark communities.
In November, UD Police completed the requisite requirements for the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Trust Building Campaign. This nearly two-year initiative calls upon law enforcement agencies to implement 25 key policies that enhance trust and collaboration between police and the communities they serve.
Completing IACP’s Trust Building Campaign comes just one month after the University’s police department earned re-accreditation from the nation’s leading law enforcement credentialing agency.
“Our department, in many ways, was already operating in alignment with industry best practices and the standards outlined by IACP’s Trust Building Campaign,” said UD Police chief Patrick Ogden, who recently was elected IACP’s vice president at large. “But completing this process called on us to more closely inspect how we do what we do, in order to find paths toward improvement.”
IACP’s Trust Building Campaign required UD Police to complete established trainings, conduct assessments, develop strategies and implement policies within six key focus areas:
Bias-free policing
Use of force
Leadership and culture
Recruitment, hiring and retention
Victim services
Community relations
Each of these key areas seeks to enhance trust between police and their communities by building and strengthening positive police-community partnerships, while also promoting safe and effective interactions; preventing and reducing crime occurrences; and improving well-being and quality of life for all.
Along with preserving safety on UD’s campus, for Ogden and the department, building trust is of paramount importance. That’s why UD Police maintain a community-focused unit that is dedicated to creating and strengthening relationships on campus and in Newark’s neighboring communities, establishing communication lines, and developing trust through safety education — both on and off campus.
In participating in IACP’s Trust Building Campaign, UD Police conducted internal reviews of existing policies to ensure the department remained in alignment with the highest ethical and practical standards in policing. As part of the initiative, UD Police personnel completed training in trauma-informed response and bias-free policing. An additional development, Ogden said, included two UD Police officers becoming certified training officers in Fair and Impartial Policing Concepts. This, the chief said, will enable the department to continue training new and existing officers through the incorporation of these concepts into in-service training modules.
“Two years is a long time to commit to any one initiative,” Ogden said. “This was important to us. Completing the IACP Trust-Building Campaign reaffirms our commitment to meeting the highest standards, incorporating the best training, and doing our jobs to the best of our abilities, so we can meet the needs and expectations of our University community and beyond.”
IACP is the world’s largest and most-influential professional association for police leaders. Learn more about IACP’s Trust Building Campaign.
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