March 25, 2022
NEW YORK - The 30x30 Initiative, a coalition of police leaders, academics and criminal justice and public sector professionals working to improve the representation and experiences of women in law enforcement, today celebrated its first anniversary with the following milestones:
Membership — 150 police agencies in the U.S. and Canada have committed through a signed pledge to a series of no- and low-cost interventions that ensure department policies and culture intentionally support the success of qualified women officers throughout their careers.
Funding — 30x30 has received funding from two major sources to support technical assistance and resources for participating agencies, build a community of practice, and better understand the needs and priorities of women officers across the country.
Arnold Ventures has invested in the significant expansion of 30x30’s technical assistance offerings, allowing for more individualized support to participating agencies and the development of model strategies to advance women. Participating agencies will identify their priority needs, and assistance will be tailored accordingly.
Mark43 is supporting listening sessions across the country, in partnership with the documentary film Women in Blue, to surface and aggregate issues affecting women officers regionally and how best to address them, with findings and recommendations to be reported within the year. These findings will inform future technical assistance efforts.
Spotlighting leaders — Five women leaders of 30x30 agencies addressed in a webinar for 30x30 affiliates today how best to develop and support women to leadership positions. Chief Vera Bumpers, Houston METRO PD; Chief Melissa Hyatt, Baltimore County PD; Chief Doreen Jokerst, University of Colorado, Boulder; Chief Sheryl Victorian, Waco PD; Chief (ret.) Ivonne Roman, Newark PD; and Deputy Commissioner Robin Wimberly, Philadelphia PD were featured.
“When we launched 30x30 last March, it was encouraging to see dozens of police departments sign up immediately,” said 30x30 co-founder Maureen McGough, chief of strategic initiatives for The Policing Project at NYU School of Law. “The enthusiastic response since by police chiefs and commissioners - women and men - reflects the reality that many law enforcement leaders want more women on their force to transform policing, and we are glad to offer a roadmap and the resources to help.”
“The appointments of women police chiefs and commissioners in recent years have been historic and no doubt deserved,” said Ivonne Roman, former chief of the Newark (NJ) Police Department and co-founder of 30x30. “At the same time, advancing women in policing must not be a ‘women’s issue.’ Men who hold much of the governing authority in this country — from police chiefs to elected officials to heads of law enforcement professional organizations — must act and set precedent as leaders and advocates.”
Despite compelling and recent research about women officers’ unique value, and concerted efforts to improve representation, the number of women officers and women occupying police executive ranks nationally have remained stagnant for decades, at 12% and 3% respectively. Since 30x30 was established, several agencies have reported recent recruit classes with as many as 50% women.
Agencies in the 30x30 network are supported to advance goals related to recruitment, retention, promotion, and culture over a two-year period, and to share progress and challenges every six months—feedback that informs additional support for participating agencies.
The 30x30 Initiative is housed at the Policing Project at the New York University School of Law and was founded with the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives (NAWLEE), with support from Microsoft’s Justice Reform Initiative. More about how to get involved, participating agencies and partnered professional organizations can be found at 30x30initiative.org.