The University of Arkansas at Little Rock Police Department has earned accreditation from the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police Law Enforcement Accreditation Program.

The program is a voluntary process where police agencies in Arkansas prove their compliance with Arkansas law enforcement’s current best practices and standards. The standards were carefully developed by Arkansas law enforcement professionals to assist agencies in the efficient and effective delivery of service and the protection of individual’s rights.

“Chief King started this, and Chief Wade-Carter completed this,” said Gary Sipes, executive director of the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police. “We are very proud of your accomplishment. This tells your university and community that their department is following the best practices and protecting the individual rights of your community members.”

The accreditation makes UA Little Rock the third campus police department in the state to earn accreditation, including the University of Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.

“This process has been a long time in the making for the department, and I can honestly say it’s an awesome feeling now that we are officially accredited,” said Regina Wade-Carter, police chief and associate vice chancellor for public safety. “In the days and times that we are living in now, we need this accreditation in law enforcement. It’s about showing the public that we are holding ourselves to a higher standard.”

To earn accreditation, UA Little Rock had to be in compliance with 188 policies, procedures, and best practices for law enforcement officers in Arkansas. Assistant Chief Rommel Benjamin oversaw the process and served as the department’s accreditation manager.

“Chief Carter’s faith in my abilities to be tasked with this endeavor and my faith in the employees and supervisors within the department all led to achieving accreditation,” Benjamin said. “Finally, the most important of all is the campus community’s faith in the department to provide the best police service possible through the guidance of the accreditation program.”

Chief Wade-Carter also thanked former Chief Brad King, who started the accreditation process, and the 29 employees of the UA Little Rock Police Department for their hard work in completing this achievement.

“Chief King started the process. Without him and the men and women of the university police department, this couldn’t have happened,” Wade-Carter said. “Assistant Chief Johnny Smith, who leads the patrol division, also stepped up in making sure we stayed on task. This was a commitment we all made when we decided to go through this intense process, and, in doing so, we knew this would make us a more stronger department.”

In the upper right photo, Pictured, from left to right, are UA Little Rock Assistant Police Chief Rommel Benjamin; UA Little Rock Former Police Chief Brad King; UA Little Rock Police Chief Regina Wade-Carter; Dr. Jerry Ganz, vice chancellor for finance and administration; and Gary Sipes, executive director of the Arkansas Association of Chiefs of Police. Photo by Angie Faller.