John Jay College’s second annual Women in Law Enforcement Symposium was named the winner of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) Community Engagement Award by the ACJS National Criminal Justice Month committee. The award recognizes the symposium’s ability to bring members of academia, the criminal justice field, and law enforcement together to acknowledge, showcase, and celebrate the pivotal role women law enforcement officers play in the field and our communities.

The award-winning event was proudly organized by Diego Redondo and Janet Winter from John Jay’s Department of Public Safety, in partnership with the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). “At John Jay, we strive to uplift everyone in our community and with the symposium, we wanted to do something to really empower women,” says Winter, Executive Assistant to the Director of Public Safety. “We were so happy to collaborate with the New York Office of the FBI and members of our community to present this event. We were able to highlight the work of incredibly talented women, have in-depth and meaningful conversations about law enforcement, and hopefully, encourage women to join the field.”

Redondo, Director of Public Safety and Risk Management, further elaborates on the development of the annual event. “We wanted to create an event that would provide a service to our local law enforcement community as well as the John Jay College community,” he says. “We wanted to have the space to talk about the different aspects of law enforcement with women who are working in, interested in, or researching the field of law enforcement.”

What does winning the Academy of Criminal Justice Services’ Community Engagement Award mean to the Department of Public Safety?

JW: It’s a meaningful acknowledgement and one we certainly appreciate from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. The Women in Law Enforcement Symposium is an event we’re immensely proud of. We really wanted to provide a service to our community and had such wonderful support putting the 2019 event together. A lot of people were interested in the topic and participated in the event, including several members of our John Jay community.

DR: We were also flattered to learn that Dr. Rosemary Barberet, Director of the International Criminal Justice major and Professor of Sociology, nominated the event for an award. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for women who are interested in the field of law enforcement to go into it. My goal always is to help people feel like they can achieve the things they want to achieve and get exposed to the things that they want to get exposed to. This way they can make good life decisions, have opportunities, and network. This symposium gives many people—professional law enforcement officers, faculty, staff, and students—interested in the same subject area the ability to get together and engage. That’s really exciting for me.

What are some of the biggest challenges that women in law enforcement currently face?

JW: During the 2019 symposium, many of the women discussed the difference in treatment they receive compared to their male counterparts. A woman may stop and question if she’s qualified, a man will just jump right into it, never questioning his qualifications. Because the law enforcement community is dominated by men, it may feel safer for men to take risks. Women in the symposium also mentioned the lack of mentorship in the field. It’s not because the women in higher positions in the field aren’t providing mentorship, its more so that there aren’t that many women mentors available. But, seeing more women in leadership positions around the country is really encouraging and will hopefully increase mentorship opportunities.

Do you think a John Jay education and the symposium can mitigate some of the challenges women in law enforcement face?

DR: I think everything we do at John Jay to empower women, people of color, people of different abilities and backgrounds is going to be helpful in breaking barriers and overcoming challenges. Bringing people together to share their strengths, their stories, and to see the successes of other people that resemble them is empowering. With the symposium, we look at some of the challenges women face and discuss what agencies can do to remove those challenges.

Where do you hope to see women in law enforcement in the future and what do women, agencies, and policymakers need to do to make that hope a reality?

DR: My ultimate hope for the future is that an event like the Women in Law Enforcement Symposium would be passe because women are appropriately represented in the field. To a large extent women are already doing what they need to do. They’re advocating for themselves and going after the positions they want, and they need to continue doing that. The agencies and corporations need to adjust. They need to make sure they are diligent in ensuring the selection process for positions are based on the proper criteria and that they have professional development opportunities available to all so that everyone has a chance to prosper in their career. Agencies are starting to reexamine how they do things and are finding better ways to ensure career advancement for all.

What advice do you have for women in our community hoping to work in law enforcement?

JW: Take advantage of every learning opportunity that’s available and help others tap into those opportunities too. When we were putting this symposium together, Diego made sure that our own officers could change their schedules and attend the event themselves. We wanted to make sure that our team had the chance to learn, network, and grow from the experience. Knowing that there were some women in the athletics department who were interested in law enforcement, we specifically reached out to them. If there’s an opportunity to gain more knowledge from other women in law enforcement, always go for it.