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After years of leading ��Ӱֱ�� State’s veterinary technology program, Dr. Melvin Chambliss is excited to begin a new role with the college as the chief diversity officer of its police academy.

Chambliss began his new job on Aug. 17. In this position, he will interact with the police academy’s cadets, law enforcement instructors, and advisory board, and review the academy’s curriculum. Most importantly, he will work in tandem with the academy to recruit a more diverse group of cadets.

Police Academy Session Director and Chief of the University Police Department at ��Ӱֱ�� State Scott Richardson said, “Dr. Chambliss is going to be a tremendous asset to the ��Ӱֱ�� State Police Academy. The goal of our academy is to graduate the best-qualified, well-rounded police officer that is ready to go out and serve their community. Having Dr. Chambliss on board is going to help us do just that.”

Speaking about his new role, Chambliss said, “It is an honor to be even considered for chief diversity officer of the police academy. I was given an opportunity in 1999 to establish and build a successful veterinary technology program here at ��Ӱֱ�� State. In doing so, I developed a friendship with an extremely dynamic and persuasive person by the name of Wendy Dresser-Recktenwald. In many ways, the vet tech program's success is in part due to her support. I now have the opportunity to help her build a great police academy here at ��Ӱֱ�� State and develop academy graduates who represent and respect everyone in the neighborhoods they will serve and protect.” 

Dresser-Recktenwald, who is ��Ӱֱ�� State’s chief of staff of Human Resources and the Center for Community Education and Training (CCET), said, “As a police academy and a college, we have a duty to teach our cadets to understand cultural diversity among different populations. More importantly they need to acquire cultural competency skills to interact with people of diverse cultures, especially in conflict management.  We hope to go beyond a traditional approach of lecture topics of diversity, equity, and bias, and establish a priority for the cadets to actually learn those skills while in our program.  If we can do this the right way, then our cadets will understand, learn, and act by treating all people with dignity and respect.”

Dresser-Recktenwald noted that the ��Ӱֱ�� State Police Academy expects its cadets “to learn from the onset that people are people, and everyone should be treated the same whether conducting an arrest based upon probable cause, a detention based on reasonable suspicion, or a consensual encounter with a local community member.”

“We don’t want to throw a few slides at them and expect them to understand. We expect them to establish a comfort level and learn the art of treating people with dignity and respect regardless of their skin color or the way they look,” Dresser-Recktenwald said. “Dr. Chambliss will help us build this program so that we are teaching them the skills they need to excel on the job and not just providing them with lecture material and hope for the best.” 

Chambliss, she added, will also be helping with recruitment. 

“If you speak with any law enforcement organization locally, they will tell you they struggle to recruit a diverse workforce,” Dresser-Recktenwald said. “We will be placing special emphasis on our academy recruitment marketing, and also, we are starting a scholarship program to help fund recruits who meet the criteria to get into the academy but are falling short when trying to pay for it.” 

Upon joining the ��Ӱֱ�� State faculty in 1999, Chambliss helped to create and develop the college’s veterinary technology program, which received accreditation in the early 2000s. Under Chambliss’ leadership, the program grew immensely and formed valuable partnerships with animal care organizations in the area to provide hands-on education experiences for vet tech students.

Chambliss has made an impact on his community, as well, through serving as director of shelter veterinarian care at the Hornell Area Humane Society and through providing vaccination and triage treatment for the Southern Tier chapter of Guiding Eyes for the Blind. In recognition of his efforts both inside and outside of the classroom, Chambliss has received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching and ��Ӱֱ�� State’s Pioneer Award. He retired from ��Ӱֱ�� State in 2018.

Chambliss and his wife, Kathi, are the parents of four children: Mekalea, Kameron, Kalem, and Makenzie.