The Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) last month successfully completed its third accreditation process in accordance with Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MA−PAC) standards, according to Director of Public and Environmental Safety Kevin Maguire.
The MA−PAC recognition process involves two steps: Bureaus are first certified, and then they are accredited.
TUPD was first certified in 2003, becoming the 14th certified bureau in the state, according to Executive Director of MA−PAC Donna Taylor Mooers. The department then received its accreditation in 2005, she added.
Becoming certified or accredited involves an in−depth examination of the department's practices, Mooers noted.
In order to receive certifications, departments must meet at least 159 mandatory standards, Mooers said. As an accredited bureau, TUPD must now meet more than 300 standards, according to Tufts' Accreditation Manager Captain Linda O'Brien.
"We have cutting−edge policies and procedures that direct our people in relation to the best practices in the industry that are currently in place," Maguire said.
TUPD, last accredited in 2009, must repeat the process every three years to maintain its accredited status, according to Mooers.
TUPD must maintain its high standards between reaccreditations as well, O'Brien noted. "It's pretty much a daily process."
Maintaining its accreditation status is critical to preserving the Tufts community's confidence in the department, according to O'Brien.
"There would probably be a perception that we're not where we should be professionally," she said. "I think that we've always maintained a high level of professionalism in this department."
The MA−PAC program has grown in recent years; 35 groups are currently certified, and 108 more are either certified or working toward their certification, according to Mooers.
Before TUPD began the certification process, Mount Holyoke and Northeastern University were the only other schools involved in the MA−PAC program, according to Training and Accreditation Coordinator James Anderson.
Today, nine Massachusetts colleges and universities' police forces are accredited or certified, including Boston University and University of Massachusetts Amherst, Mooers said.
No police department in Massachusetts, including city or town police forces, is required to undergo the accreditation process, Maguire noted.
"It's all voluntary," he said. "Police departments actually step up to the plate and request to be accredited because of the tremendous internal leadership and management that is demanded by police departments."
Former Senior Director of Public and Environmental Safety John King, who left Tufts in June 2010, initially spearheaded TUPD's effort to become certified, O'Brien said.
At the time, King recognized that TUPD already met many of the MA−PAC requirements for certification, and receiving the actual accreditation would have been relatively simple, O'Brien said.
"We've always been held to a higher standard in this department, and this pretty much just documents it," she said. "It helps us because everybody knows what's expected."
Accreditation is a sign of the department's commitment to professionalism, Maguire noted.
"What that tells you is that the internal workings of the police department, from its senior leadership and management to its police officers and public safety officers, that they're dedicated, they're professional, they're hard−working, and that they adopt and maintain the current best practices in the industry," Maguire said.
