The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is planning to hire more women officers as part of a new initiative aiming to increase the representation of women in policing agencies around the country.
The announcement came on Monday, March 7 from DC Police Chief Robert Contee and Mayor Muriel Bowser.
The goal of the 30×30 initiative is to expand the rate of women in police department recruit classes to 30 percent by the year 2030, as well as support qualified women officers throughout their careers via police policies and culture.
It is based on the idea of creating at least 30 percent representation — as a threshold — to empower a group to influence the culture of an organization. Participating departments are required to share information with each other about their achievements and problems.
“For many years, we have been deliberately focused on making sure the Metropolitan Police Department represents and reflects our community,” Bowser said about the decision.
“It is one of the reasons why we invest so much into the Cadet Corps program – because the program allows us to attract and retain DC residents to be DC police, especially women. As we grow MPD back to 4,000 officers, we are proud to highlight the important work of women at MPD and to invite more women in the community to join them,” added the mayor.
As we continue to grow MPD back to 4,000 officers, we are proud to highlight the critical work of women at MPD, and we invite more women in the community to join them.
For job opportunities: https://t.co/inxQ4UoBsF pic.twitter.com/74v2pxLUvE
— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) March 7, 2022
Currently, female police officers constitute around 12 percent of the forces nationwide, while only three percent are in police leadership positions.
In Washington DC, women make up 23 percent of the Department’s sworn officers, which is well above the national average.
Most recent recruit class of DC police included 52 percent women, and about 47 percent of the current MPD Cadet Corps is women.
“This pledge is important, not only for our current female members, but for all the women and girls around the country who are watching and saying to themselves, ‘I too can be a police officer in Washington, DC’,” said Contee.
“The Metropolitan Police Department may have already hit the 30% goal, but we will not stop there. I am eager to take part in and see the change this initiative will bring to MPD and to our city. As a department, we are deeply committed to bringing equality to all of our members and will continue to strive to advance their representation in our agency,” he continued.