COLUMBUS – After six months in the role of interim chief, Kimberly Spears-McNatt has officially taken over as the Ohio State University Police Division’s first female chief.
With the appointment, which took effect on Jan. 1, Spears-McNatt (above left) becomes the agency’s 11th police chief. She took over as interim chief following the departure of Craig Stone.
“I graduated from Ohio State and began my law enforcement career on the Columbus campus. The safety of our campus community remains my top priority and I look forward to moving our agency forward with a focus on education and community engagement,” Spears-McNatt said.
Spears-McNatt received her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Ohio State and a master’s degree from Franklin University.
In her nearly 25 years with the OSU Division of Police, she has received several honors, including a Commendation Award and a Medal of Valor and was named deputy chief in August 2016. She is a member of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police and the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
Joining Spears-McNatt at the top of the chain-of-command is Deputy Chief Tracy Hahn (above right), who retired as Upper Arlington’s first female police chief in September and rejoined the OSU police, where she began her law enforcement career, in October.