Photo Credit: HPD Media
Do you have dreams of becoming a police officer, or have you ever considered a career in law enforcement? If so, the Houston Police Department (HPD), is hosting a career fair on Saturday, August 27, 2022, at Discovery Green from 10am-2pm.
Across the nation, police departments have struggled with keeping police officers, and HPD is looking for new individuals to join their phenomenal team. Commander Kristine Anthony-Miller stated, “We know that our numbers are down in Houston from our allocated strength versus our current manpower, so certainly in Houston we continue our recruiting efforts so we can add more officers to our ranks. We are going to have attrition like resignations and retirements, so it’s the mission of the recruiting division to recruit those qualified individuals to join our ranks.”
Commander Anthony-Miller also mentioned a variety of reasons as to why there is a police shortage stating, “We have competition from other industries, we had the pandemic, and incidents in society that challenge someone from wanting to be in law enforcement. We also work shift work, so you’re not going to get day shifts and weekends off, so maybe that doesn’t appeal to some people as well as salary challenges.”
Lieutenant Daryl Henderson, who has been with the city for 30 years and was assigned to recruiting right at the onset of the pandemic, mentioned that in his time with the department, HPD has had a great amount of support from the community, the mayor, and city council. He also mentioned that “even during COVID, we had to retool how we engaged the public because businesses were closed, but we still in my opinion did well as a far as our recruiting efforts locally when you look at our counterparts across the country.”
Commander Anthony-Miller added that their success can also be due to the benefits that HPD offers and the “varied experiences and opportunities” they have and can provide. “Because of the benefits and the strong support of these community partnerships, I really think that’s why people are wanting to join the Houston Police Department,” she sated.
On top of great benefits, there is a great amount of diversity within the organization. “It’s no secret that HPD values diversity and diversity in hiring. We are a diverse organization in our personnel, and on top of it we have diverse job opportunities. We have at minimum 45 divisions, not counting all the units in our organization that one can apply and become a part of.” The Houston Police Department takes great pride in their diverse department and are excited for the potential new members to join their team.
The hiring event is open to the public because “we want to showcase what HPD has to offer,” said Commander Anthony-Miller. At the event, there will be recruiters who will be talking to anyone who is interested, as well as SWAT, the bomb squad, patrol officers, a variety of investigative divisions, community partners, and so much more.
If you are interested in becoming a police officer, visit www.hpdcareers.com, for the requirements and additional information.
