To Connect and Serve

Determined to pursue law enforcement since middle school, Kendell Jefferson, CAS ’18, never looked back. Jefferson was recently promoted to sergeant within the Detroit Police Department (DPD), and her work focuses on community and connection.

Jefferson found her footing for the field at OU, where the track student-athlete studied criminal justice and immersed herself in hands-on internships and on-campus employment as a police service aide. “It was really cool to work closely with law enforcement,” Jefferson says. “One of the Oakland officers was a former DPD officer, so he took me under his wing and would coach me through certain things to get me prepared for the mindset of being a police officer.”

A senior year internship at Detroit’s Office of the Inspector General further opened the door to networking opportunities, setting the stage for Jefferson’s future and igniting her love for the city. “You know how to be a student, you know how to be an athlete, but I think what really refined me is knowing how to be professional, especially being as young as I was,” Jefferson says.

Before her promotion to sergeant in May, Jefferson made an impact as a neighborhood police officer in DPD’s 6th Precinct. Her work has focused on community engagement, such as establishing positive relationships with citizens, connecting people and businesses to resources, community policing and mentoring youths in schools — and learning the ropes as a young officer with the support of her colleagues. “It was like family,” Jefferson says. “No matter where you are, the camaraderie of the Detroit Police Department is insanely amazing. I felt at home.”

As part of her work, Jefferson also helped establish the 6th Precinct Community Closet, a resource that offers food, toiletries, clothes and toys. Her contributions to her precinct have earned Jefferson the Chief’s Merit Award and the Spirit of Detroit Award. Reflected in her service, establishing rapport with the community and building positive relationships is one of the most important aspects of the job to Jefferson.

“Nine times out of ten, when you come across somebody, they’re not having the best day,” Jefferson says. “So when you see us, we’re kind of connecting them back to a more positive look on law enforcement … I don’t know how many times I got called a ‘niece’ or ‘the baby,’ ‘my grandchild’ or something like that. You form these bonds with people, and it definitely changes the way I police.”