Recruiting and 

Retaining Officers

IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Kelly D. Bradley


The opinions contained herein are those of the forum participants and do not necessarily represent the 

official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.

The internet references cited in this publication were valid as of the date of publication. Given that URLs and 

websites are in constant flux, neither the author(s), the contributor(s), nor the U.S. Department of Justice can 

vouch for their current validity.

This resource may be subject to copyright. The U.S. Department of Justice reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable license to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use and authorize others to use 

this resource for Federal Government purposes. This resource may be freely distributed and used for 

noncommercial and educational purposes only. 

Recommended citation:

Bradley, Kelly. 2020. Recruiting and Retaining Officers in Small and Rural Agencies. Washington, DC: Office of 

Community Oriented Policing Services.

Published 2020
Contents

Letter from the Directorv

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction 1

What Does a Good Officer Look Like? ............................................3

Why Do People Leave? 9

Early career departures 10

Switching agencies 11

Role of Training 19

Challenges to Recruitment and Retention 23

What Works? Building a Roadmap to Attract Applicants and Retain Officers 31

Conclusion 35

References 37

List of Forum Attendees 41

About the COPS Office 43

Letter from the Director

Colleagues: 

In December 2019, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services held a day-long 

forum to discuss recruitment and retention challenges for smaller and more rural law 

enforcement agencies. These agencies often handle a broader array of duties than urban 

departments and, owing to their small size, tend to spend more time per officer on service and 

crime prevention. 

The forum’s 32 participants included police chiefs, captains, lieutenants, academic experts, 

researchers, and agency directors of state police standards. This small but diverse group 

allowed for a wide-ranging discussion that focused on the qualities that make an effective 

police officer, reasons why officers retire early or switch departments, and not only the 

departments’ significant recruitment and retention challenges but also the strategies 

they use to attract and keep officers. The resulting exchange of ideas and success stories 

highlighted in this publication reflect the unique regional and size differences between the 

departments. In short, the participating departments display how to be responsive to the 

community served and flexible in meeting the needs of staff. They demonstrate that small, 

incremental change can make a big difference.

The participants also emphasized how poor leadership can be particularly destructive for an 

agency’s ability to recruit and retain its workforce, whereas strong leadership that values 

community support and fosters the department’s reputation can greatly aid recruitment 

and retention. Moreover, leadership that takes time to interview not only those officers 

who leave but also (and arguably more importantly) those who choose to stay with their 

department can learn critical information about what makes their agency a satisfying place 

to work and leverage that information for future recruitment purposes. 

Sincerely, 

Phil Keith

Director

Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

Acknowledgments

This report would not have been possible without the contributions of a team of people 

who made the forum a success. This includes Dr. Penny Phelps for her skilled meeting 

facilitation, Mark Damitio of the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement 

Standards and Training for assisting in the search for a location, and Mike Sherlock of the 

Nevada Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training and Brian DeMunnik of the 

Regional Public Safety Training Center in Reno for hosting the event. Diane Michault and 

Mark Gifford of SIDEM coordinated all meeting logistics, and Dr. Kelly Bradley of LaSierra 

University captured the conversation and drafted the report. 

Thanks also to Chief Jim Porter (ret.) of Bend, Oregon, and Dr. Elizabeth Linos of the 

University of California, Berkeley, for their presentations on the day, Jennifer Styles of 

the International Association of Chiefs of Police for her guidance on discussion topics 

and participants, and Deborah Spence and Helene Bushwick at the Office of Community 

Oriented Policing Services for their leadership and support of this project.

Introduction

On December 10, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented 

Policing Services (COPS Office) held a day-long forum on recruitment and retention in law 

enforcement. The COPS Office brought together a total of 32 participants: 25 police chiefs, 

captains, and lieutenants from smaller and more rural law enforcement agencies and 7 

academic experts, researchers, and state police standards agency directors. The departments 

were selected in part because they have been tackling, with varying success, one of the 

difficult issues that policing faces in the 21st century—namely, the recruitment and 

retention of officers. 

The forum’s small size allowed for a wide-ranging discussion that focused on the qualities 

that make a good police officer, an in-depth examination of why people leave a department, 

the most significant challenges to recruiting and retaining officers, and a brainstorming 

session on the range of strategies these departments use to attract and keep officers. The 

result was an exchange of ideas and success stories that reflected the unique regional and 

size differences between the departments. The different strategies shared provided proof 

that, in the words of Deborah Spence, an assistant director of the COPS Office, “if you build 

an organization where people feel valued, people will want to come work there.” 

This publication is not the first to address recruitment and retention. Prior reports by the 

COPS Office and other entities have also focused on the concerns and challenges of hiring 

police officers today (Wilson, Dalton, Scheer, and Grammich 2010), have laid out the 

downward trends in hiring (PERF 2019), and discussed possible strategies for improving 

departments’ successes in both recruiting and retaining officers (Copple 2017; Morison 

2017). 

However, the COPS Office recognized that while we have a sizable body of knowledge 

on what could and should be done for recruiting and retaining officers, the focus on such 

efforts has not necessarily examined smaller and rural departments. Consequently, it is 

worth exploring if smaller departments are engaging in qualitatively different strategies 

than larger departments. The purpose of the December 2019 meeting was to bring together 

leaders from these departments in order to document the challenges they face and exchange 

ideas on how they have been able to respond to the needs of their communities while 

encouraging and nurturing their staff.

What Does a Good Officer Look Like? 

“Officers now carry more gear, use more technology, and face 

greater scrutiny than previous generations.” 

Having a career in law enforcement today is both more complicated and more complex 

than in previous generations. Law enforcement is often tasked with counterterrorism and 

homeland security duties, in addition to responding to calls for service and emergency 

calls, patrolling neighborhoods, controlling traffic, apprehending and arresting offenders, 

investigating crime, as well as being “the first responders to a whole range of social issues” 

(Flynn and Harrington 2015, p. 3). In addition, officers now carry more gear, use more 

technology, and face greater scrutiny than previous generations (Blumberg, Schlosser, 

Papazouglou, Creighton, and Kaye 2019). Considering the challenges facing policing and 

recognizing the need to define quality policing to help create a roadmap for the type of 

officers agencies are trying to recruit and retain, meeting attendees were asked, “What does 

a good officer look like?” All attendees participated in this brainstorming discussion. 

In the article “New Directions in Police Academy Training: A Call to Action,” the authors 

contend that cognitive, emotional, social/interpersonal, and moral skills are essential for 

officers facing the challenges of modern policing (Blumberg et al. 2019). They define 

cognitive skills as involving decision-making and judgement, impulse control and attention 

to safety, conscientiousness and dependability, and adaptability and flexibility; emotional 

skills as emotional regulation, stress tolerance, and emotional intelligence; social skills as 

social competence, teamwork, and assertiveness and persuasiveness; and moral skills as 

integrity, ethics, and spirituality. The views of the meeting attendees largely align with 

this categorization (see table 1 on page 4). Attendees were in complete agreement on all 

the attributes put forth, but they especially resonated with trustworthiness and integrity, 

initiative and work ethic, common sense and analytical ability, emotional intelligence, and 

social skills as critical qualities. 
4 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Table 1. Attendee answers to “What does a good officer look like?”

Cognitive skills Emotional skills Social / interpersonal 

skills

Moral skills

• A critical thinker who 

understands procedural 

justice, is committed to 

community policing, and 

reflects the community we 

serve

• Ability to think outside the 

box

• Adaptable

• Better than minimum—no 

more meeting minimum 

standards

• Common sense

• Decisive

• Drive to grow and learn

• Fast on their feet yet slow 

when needed

• Good judgement

• Multi-tasker

• Prepared

• Proactive

• Problem solver

• Procedurally just and fair

• Self-starter

• Strong work ethic

• Tactically sound

• Understands their role in 

our criminal justice system

• Appropriately engages in 

confrontation when needed 

and be a gentle giant the 

next minute

• Be empathetic

• Calm confidence

• Calm under pressure

• Caring and smart

• Courageous

• Has compassion and is 

dedicated

• Have emotional maturity

• Resilient—the ability to 

deal with internal and 

external stressors in your life

• Satisfied

• Understanding and 

patience

• Acceptance of differences

• Community focused

• Culturally competent

• Desire to be part of the 

community and be a 

partner with members of 

the department

• Effective communicator

• Good listener

• Self-aware

• Servant mindset

• Strong sense of 

commitment to their 

community

• Teamwork

• The heart of a saint and the 

spirit of a warrior

• Willingness to see value in 

others

• Committed

• Ethical

• Fair and transparent

• Open-minded

• Strong integrity

• Strong moral compass

• Trustworthy

• Unquestioned character

Note: Of all the statements made by the attendees, only two do not fit within these categories: “be physically fit” and “a good fit with 

the department.”
What Does a Good Officer Look Like? 5

Interestingly, the responses bear a striking similarity not only to responses by law 

enforcement personnel in other forums sponsored by the COPS Office but also to the 

professional literature. In a previous COPS Office forum on law enforcement recruitment in 

the 21st century, those attendees identified 11 characteristics of the “ideal recruit” (Copple 

2017, p. 5): 

1. Analytical

2. A skilled communicator

3. Streetwise and possessing common sense

4. A problem solver

5. A change maker

6. Adaptable

7. Culturally competent 

8. Strong advocate for human rights

9. Well-educated

10. Compassionate

11. Visionary

A COPS Office forum that focused on hiring for the 21st century identified seven 

fundamental characteristics of police officers: integrity, service orientation, empathy, 

communication and human relations skills, self-control, team orientation, and problemsolving skills (Morison 2017). Moreover, the professional literature describes many of 

the same characteristics as the December 2019 meeting attendees and previous forums 

described. For example, the “ideal police officer” is one who not only exhibits honesty, 

financial responsibility, stable employment, and a clean police record but also shows other 

qualities, including initiative, sense of ethics, respect for law, good communication skills, 

common sense, and a service mentality (Capps 2014), while the “essential attributes” of 

police leadership include education, active listening, attention to detail, service, and humor 

(McLean n.d.). 

Clearly, the law enforcement executives at this meeting, previous COPS Office meetings, 

and professional publications are all in agreement about the desirable characteristics of 

police officers. Not so clear are the best mechanisms for recruiting personnel with these 

qualities and retaining them. As discussed in subsequent sections, the December 2019 

meeting participants shared their challenges with recruitment and retention and the lessons 

they learned about why officers leave their departments.
6 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

While officers and practitioners, including those at the meeting, look at the characteristics 

of high-quality law enforcement and those of a good officer, policing scholars and 

researchers do not; they generally focus on the attributes of poor policing—i.e., what 

makes for a bad officer—and think the focus should primarily be on measuring police 

performance. According to a journal article, this focus is largely due to a lack of consensus 

on what constitutes quality policing, while scholars and researchers are in agreement 

that “nonfeasance, excessive use of force, discourteous and aggressive actions as well as 

other behaviors [represent] traits of bad officers” (Henson et al. 2010, p. 9). In addition, 

researchers may focus on bad officer performance because it is easier to operationalize 

and measure poor attributes than strong ones. That is, quantifying good policing requires 

operationalizing the concept of good, which is difficult because departments have different 

needs and different definitions of success. Consequently, what one jurisdiction identifies as 

good policing will not necessarily work in another. 

Compounding the challenge of defining and implementing these concepts is the problem 

policing faces with not having a clear mandate, which is unique among professions (see 

White 2008). In the research article “Identifying Good Cops Early,” the author argues that 

policing involves a wide array of responsibilities, including preventing and controlling crime, 

apprehending offenders, traffic and crowd control, and helping people in need of assistance, 

thus accurately assessing quality police performance is very difficult (White 2008)—an 

assertion that many academics and policing professionals would likely agree with. 

Some policing scholars argue that the way to assess police performance is through evidencebased policing (EBP).1

 According to a Police Foundation article, “evidence-based policing 

uses research to guide practice and evaluate practitioners. It uses the best evidence to 

shape the best practice” (Sherman 1998, p. 4). Proponents of EBP believe that it provides 

a practical mechanism for making policing more effective because of the focus on using 

policing practices that work and discarding those that do not (Cordner 2020). EBP pushes 

departments to move beyond doing things as they have always been done, or, in the 

tongue-in-cheek words of the forum moderator, not being the department known to have 

“100 years of tradition uninterrupted by progress.” 

1. For a detailed report on assessing police performance using EBP, see Cordner 2020.
What Does a Good Officer Look Like? 7

From the EBP perspective, data, analysis, research, and evidence are important and guide 

sound decision-making, thus enabling an agency to efficiently achieve real-world results. 

In terms of measurement, EBP can focus on both outcomes (e.g., maintaining safety 

and order) and outputs (e.g., number of arrests) in order to make a department more 

effective (Cordner 2020). According to proponents, EBP is particularly useful because it 

leverages research knowledge to develop and implement policing strategies, resulting in 

smarter crime control at lower cost to cities and municipalities (Bueerman 2012). Meeting 

participants, while not explicitly discussing EBP, acknowledged its potential usefulness 

through comments such as that made by one participant who stated, “We forget we are in 

a labor-intensive field. We are publicly funded. We have an ethical duty to give the public 

the biggest bang for their buck.” Advocates for EBP would argue the best way to do that is 

through sound scientific decision-making.

However, some argue that a focus on EBP loses the craft aspect of policing in which quality 

of work is more important than quantity of measurements (Willis and Mastrofski 2018). 

According to a Police Foundation publication, craft-style policing is “the culmination of 

knowledge based on hands-on experience” (Willis 2013, p. 2), and this publication argues 

that officers view their profession as craft, not science. In particular, these scholars believe 

that EBP places too much emphasis on decision-making based on scientific evidence, while 

a craft focus acknowledges the significant skill and expertise policing requires (Willis and 

Mastrofski 2018). While not dismissing the use of EBP, the craft-perspective argues that, 

in practice, officers are more resistant to using scientific-based decision-making and more 

likely to use their own experience and knowledge about people, places, and events (Willis 

2013). The meeting attendees implicitly acknowledged the value of a craft-perspective 

through such statements as “a good officer is someone who can relate, who can understand 

what someone is going through, who can listen and then problem solve.”

Neither policing scholars who advocate for increased use of EBP nor those who embrace 

the craft-perspective argue that the other view is not useful. Undoubtedly there is room in 

the policing toolbox for both evidence-based and craft-style policing. Attendees provided 

evidence of this duality when asked to describe what a good officer looks like, as some of 

the attributes attendees stated are essential to an evidence-based perspective, and some 

are essential to the craft-style perspective. Specifically, the analytical and common-sense 

statements are particularly useful for learning the evidence-based style, and the resiliency 

and seeing-value-in-others type statements are more relevant for engaging in the craft style. 
8 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Meeting participants agreed that the key to recruitment and retention of officers in smaller 

and rural jurisdictions is finding, fostering, encouraging, and nurturing the qualities 

outlined above. The main sentiment can be summed up in the words of one participant: “I 

can train anyone to be a cop, but I can’t train integrity.” 

“I can train anyone to be a cop, but I can’t train integrity.”
Why Do People Leave?

In addition to discussing attributes of ideal officers, the meeting participants held a 

brainstorming session on why people leave the department or force for reasons other than 

retirement. The attendees’ ideas on this topic can be grouped into two broad categories: 

(1) officers who leave for an entirely different job or profession and (2) those who leave for 

other agencies. The attendees noted a distinction between the types of officers who leave 

the profession; some leave early in their career, either during or shortly after the academy, 

and others leave much later in their careers as a result of burnout and stress. The attendees 

stated that officers who choose to switch to a different department usually do so to seek 

more opportunities in larger departments to develop a specialized skill set or advance 

their career, to get better pay and benefits, to leave poor leadership within the previous 

department, or because of external pressures such as family obligations. 

According to policing scholars, the nature of turnover in policing is not a well-researched 

area (Smith, Wareham, and Lambert 2014; Haarr 2005). Researchers distinguish between 

officers who leave voluntarily and those who leave involuntarily (see Wilson et al. 

2010). In the brainstorming discussion, the attendee responses focused on the problem of 

voluntary turnover, likely because researchers generally find that officers are more likely 

to voluntarily leave than involuntarily (Smith, Wareham, and Lambert 2014). Research on 

officer turnover shows that usually there is not a single driving event that leads to officers 

leaving a department, nor an overarching theory for why officers leave (Wilson et al. 2010). 

Nevertheless, the findings of a study that modeled the “five main influences” of officer 

attrition—other opportunities, compensation, personal characteristics, organization 

issues, and employee needs—largely mirror the reasons the attendees discussed (Wilson 

et al. 2010). In a similar vein, other research posits four theories on police turnover: 

job satisfaction, burnout, confluency, and cognitive dissonance (Haarr 2005; see the 

below sidebar). 

What are confluency and cognitive dissonance? 

“Confluency theory attributes police turnover to an absence of pre-employment job awareness and to 

incongruencies between job expectations and realities.”

Cognitive dissonance theory results from the discrepancy between police work as idealized by the officers, 

how it was taught during training, and the reality of such work in practice.

-----------------------

* Source: Haarr 2005
10 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Early career departures

A small number of meeting attendees were more concerned about officers who leave 

early—i.e., during the academy or shortly thereafter—as opposed to after one’s career is 

already established. In general, attendees felt that, for these officers, the job “does not meet 

their expectations,” which aligns with confluency theory (see Haarr 2005). Some felt that 

these officers realize “they do not have the necessary skill set” and thus move into different 

professions, such as “a guy left to go sell insurance.” The officers who leave early seem to be 

the most confounding to the attendees, many of whom guessed that perhaps those officers 

do so simply because they’re “just not cut out for it,” and “those get weeded out pretty 

early.” The officers who leave early seem to be the most confounding for the group. As 

one participant stated, “I still struggle to understand how someone jumps through all those 

hoops to get hired and then quits the first week of the academy.” And another stated, “In the 

academy, we lose more the first week than we do for the rest of the 6 months”—the duration 

of the academy. While a third stated, “It’s weird that you can spend all that time getting into 

the profession and then figure out in five days that it’s not what you thought it was.” 

The attendees also expressed concern about police departments that might not be preparing 

officers for the realities of the job. As one attendee stated, “I think some of the agencies are 

doing a disservice by not truly explaining what the job entails. Some of these young men 

and women come in with a different mindset of what police work looks like. Educating them 

upfront is important. Some think they are only going to drive cars fast and shoot guns.” 

Another stated, “those we’ve lost in our [field training officer] program, there is a lack of 

critical thinking and multi-tasking ability. They get really overwhelmed when they get out on 

their own and are dealing with multiple issues at once.” 

While the attendees may have been perplexed by the officers who drop out during the 

academy or shortly thereafter, some researchers would likely not be. A 2005 study examined 

why police recruits leave police work within the first 16 months, finding that those who 

left voluntarily, which was the majority cause of turnover in the study, did so because 

they “experienced conflict and a state of dissonance when their experiences in the training 

academy, field training, and police work were inconsistent with or contradictory to their 

sense of self and their cognitions about what police work should be” (Haarr 2005, p. 449). 

“The attendees also expressed concern about police 

departments that might not be preparing officers for the 

realities of the job.”
Why Do People Leave? 11

Some attendees mentioned that officers later in their careers seem more likely to leave 

the profession because of illness, injuries, or job burnout. One attendee mentioned that 

officers are “losing hope on society, on the people we serve. They get discouraged.” Others 

mentioned that it is “unavoidable stuff, like illnesses and injuries.”

An attendee stated that the “demands of the job wears down officers.” To help alleviate 

such strain, this department has increased its focus on mental health and well-being by 

implementing peer support after critical incidents, which has “really helped with the mental 

health aspect.” Some attendees believe that an “unaddressed lack of support for trauma 

faced on the job” leads veteran officers to “leave law enforcement all together” rather than 

leaving for another department. A study on work-family conflict, stress, and burnout in 

law enforcement found that higher levels of officer stress are significantly related to greater 

burnout. The authors point out that burnout in officers can have a range of detrimental 

effects, including increased absenteeism and leaving the job (Griffin and Sun 2018).

Switching agencies

Attendees noted several reasons why officers leave for other law enforcement positions. 

The most noted reason was for better pay and benefits. According to one attendee, “A lot of 

people will chase the dollar; they are always looking for the next higher paying job.” While 

another stated, “Salary has not kept pace with the skill demands of the police. Applicants 

must have high emotional intelligence, computer skills, combat skills.” A third attendee 

added, a “big reason for leaving is monetary. We are surrounded by municipalities that have 

significantly higher pay scales. When we pushed through higher pay scales, that’s when we 

started seeing retention. Folks like working for us; they want to stay, so when we were able 

to give them a decent living, they started staying.”

A study on factors influencing turnover in small, medium, and large agencies found that 

pay incentives reduced voluntary turnover in smaller agencies but not in medium- and 

large-size departments (Smith, Wareham, and Lambert 2014). These researchers concluded 

that the lack of pay results in increased strain in smaller agencies and argue that agency size 

is a factor in reasons for turnover. 

“A study on factors influencing turnover in small, medium, 

and large agencies found that pay incentives reduced 

voluntary turnover in smaller agencies but not in mediumand large-size departments.”
12 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

According to a law enforcement best practices guide, salary is “the most frequently cited 

reason by police executives of why officers leave,” but the guide also states that while 

“money is not a motivator, [. . .] absence of money is a de-motivator” (Orrick 2007, p. 7–8). 

The guide makes roughly the same point as stated by the attendees, who argued that salary 

is important when officers cannot meet their expenses. However, one study argues that 

turnover is often about more than salary and that focusing on compensation “can distract 

from other substantive and more deeply embedded issues, such as organizational culture, 

leadership, and employee engagement” (Wilson 2010, p. 36). 

Another reason officers leave is due to the more limited opportunities in smaller and rural 

departments. In particular, attendees felt that opportunities are not always commensurate 

with ambition. “We can’t provide them much specialization; we can’t send them off to a 

task force,” said one attendee. Another stated that officers leave his department because 

they “want to do some fun things, want to be K-9 officers, but we’re limited in our ability to 

provide that.” 

Policing research has also shown that lack of promotional opportunities is a reason officers 

leave a department (Smith, Wareham, and Lambert 2014), and larger departments will 

“poach exceptional officers from smaller departments” (Orrick 2007, p 9). In addition, 

smaller departments are less likely to be able to provide specialty positions and the level of 

sophisticated technology seen in urban departments (Holmes, Painter, and Smith 2017). 

Attendees acknowledged that these factors are largely uncontrollable for the smaller 

departments; however, these agencies do have some benefits not shared by large 

departments. For instance, one attendee from a rural area stated that they do find officers 

who find that ruralness “is for them because they like to hunt and fish.” Meeting attendees 

also noted that while they do lose some to bigger agencies with more opportunities, they 

have officers from the larger agencies “coming to us because of the lack of family feel [in big 

departments]; they feel like a number instead of somebody important.”

While acknowledging that smaller departments are better at providing a “family feel,” which 

attracts officers and makes retention easier, several of the law enforcement executives in 

attendance noted that poor leadership can drive people away from the department. Many 

agreed with the comments of one who stated, “It’s not always about the money; if your 

folks are well taken care of, they will stay. Often it is that they have lost confidence in 

leadership, or they don’t feel they are taken care of.” Another added, “When I came in 

as chief, a couple of people were in the process of leaving. They said, ‘Sorry, we wouldn’t 

have left if we knew you were coming in. We lost all confidence in leadership and the city 

manager.’ They felt completely unwanted and unloved, so they bailed.” 
Why Do People Leave? 13

The importance of leadership can be critical both to officer retention and well-being. 

Regarding the former, research contends that loss of trust and confidence in leadership 

makes it harder to retain officers in the department (Wilson et al. 2010) and that an 

employee’s relationship with his or her manager is a critical reason for leaving the agency 

(Orrick 2007). Research also points out that when officers are promoted to supervisor roles, 

they are not given training on their new role (Orrick 2007)—a point made by the attendees. 

As one attendee stated, “We give them [new officers] a lot of effort early on in their career 

and get them trained up, and then throw them the keys and say, ‘Good luck.’ They don’t 

get extra training. It is hard for them to get the training needed to meet POST [Peace Officer 

Standards and Training] standards. The supervisors are the least trained in our department. 

You don’t give them any training, and then they don’t train the new people; they don’t 

know how to.” 

As for well-being, a study of German law enforcement found that a health-oriented 

leadership2

 approach is effective in reducing burnout, depression, and physical health 

problems of the police workforce (Santa Maria et al. 2018). The Bend (Oregon) Police 

Department has undertaken extensive efforts to improve officer well-being, implementing a 

style of leadership that aligns with “health-oriented” (see the below sidebar).

2. Health-oriented leadership emphasizes staff-care, promotes healthy working conditions, and supports protective health 

measures such as work-life balance and reducing work-related stressors (Santa Maria et al. 2018).

A focus on officer wellness in Bend, Oregon

Chief Jim Porter of the Bend (Oregon) Police Department gave a presentation on his agency’s efforts to 

improve the health and well-being of its officers by implementing a wide variety of tactics and programs 

that are responsive to the needs of the officers and their families. The city of Bend, with a population of 

97,500, is a resort town that sees 4,200 overnight accommodations per year. The police department has 106 

sworn officers and 34 non-sworn, with 100,000 calls for service in a year. 

Chief Porter rose through the ranks to become chief in 2014 after the previous chief was fired. The 

department was in crisis. Patrol teams were at minimum staffing 65 percent of the time, and patrol teams 

were below minimum staff 22 percent of the time. The patrol division completely relied on overtime to 

ensure safe staff levels—meaning officers could not get time off unless they called in sick. In addition, some 

people saw the department as “a drag on the city budget, rather than an investment.” The department had 

a number of other challenges: it could not attract qualified lateral applicants, and entry-level applicants 

struggled with the field training process and were washing out at a rate of 20 to 30 percent. The cost of 

living in the resort town was quite high, and morale in the department was quite low. A staffing survey 

revealed that only 37 percent of staff supported leadership, 22 percent would recommend the department 

as a place to work, and 53 percent expressed satisfaction with their job (see table A on page 14). 
14 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Table A. Anonymous employee survey

2014 2015 2016* 2017 2018

Trust in leadership 37% 58% N/A 70% 82%

Workforce satisfaction 53% 63% N/A 73% 80%

Recommend BPD as a 

place to work and enter 

law enforcement

22% 46% N/A 75% 84%

Source: Bend (Oregon) Police Department’s HR staff

* The department did not take an internal survey in 2016.

However, within the first year as chief, the department experienced two significant events: (1) A 

major wildfire threatened the city; yet it also created a bond among department staff and fortified the 

department’s already good relationship with the fire department; and (2) the sudden death of a beloved 

sergeant on the force, who, with an undiagnosed heart condition, had a heart attack after a stressful day 

at work. That loss served as a catalyst for change, resulting in Chief Porter undertaking what he calls the 

Sergeant John Lawrence project, which provides in-depth medical assessments and treatment for 45 officers 

per year. 

The department also conducted a survey on physical and mental health stressors, finding that more than 

half of officers struggle with fatigue and trying to stay fit, and nearly half struggle with shift work, lack of 

family time, and being able to eat healthily on shift. For their mental health stressors, the department found 

that nearly 40 percent had trouble sleeping or trouble with hyper alertness, one third struggled with feeling 

cut off or distant, and nearly one-quarter struggled with episodes of irrational anger or repeated disturbing 

and unwanted memories.

The department used the results of the physical and mental health survey, as well as their recognized need 

to improve hiring, by putting together a range of solutions. In order to attract highly qualified lateral hires 

with more than three years’ experience, they offered several incentives, including the following:

• $7,500 signing bonus

• $1,000 for moving expenses

• 40 hours each of sick leave and vacation upon hiring

• Entry at top salary step

• Enrollment in salary incentive plans
To improve hiring more generally, the department made the following changes:

• Streamlined the hiring process to 90 days

• Switched from a field training to police training officer process, which allows for more mentoring and 

coaching

• Provides active assistance to families with moving, home relocating, school district choices, physicians, 

and dentists

To address officer health and well-being, the department offers the following:

• Family support programs

• Spousal training days on weekends, covering topics such as nutrition, financial and will planning, insurance and benefits, and weapons training

• Mental and physical wellness programming, which includes the following:

• 45 minutes for on-duty workouts with their team at the end of the shift, coupled with mindfulness 

sessions offered at the end of the shift, so that officers are more refreshed in their transition from 

work to home

• On-duty yoga offered twice per week

• An in-house psychologist who does not provide treatment but connects officers to appropriate 

services

• Balanced warrior training

• Mindfulness retreats in conjunction with the Hillsboro (Oregon) Police Department

• An on-duty restorative rest room where officers can take a 20-minute nap

• Family-friendly schedules that include time for required training

• Community-enhancement program 

Officers like the community-enhancement program because it gives them positive interaction with the 

community and gives them a break from service calls. With this program, officers who complete 21.5 hours 

of positive police contacts in a year get a 2-percent bonus. The department defines positive police contacts 

as interactions with veteran’s groups, foot patrols without enforcement, retirement centers, boys and girls 

clubs, and all the schools. 

Annual surveys conducted by the city show a significant improvement in trust, satisfaction, citizen 

confidence, and fewer workplace injuries (see tables B and C on page 16). In addition, new hires rate the 

department’s proactive culture of employee and family support as important to their decision to join the 

Bend Police Department. Chief Porter and the department are an example of an agency that is not afraid 

to tackle seemingly intransigent problems by trying new things; embracing a culture of transparency; and 

fostering trust within the department, city leadership, and residents of Bend.

Why Do People Leave? 15
16 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Table B. External community survey

2014 2016 2018

Citizen confidence in BPD 57%* 80.6% 85%

Citizen trustworthiness in BPD N/A 78% 84%

Source: Portland State University

Note: No external survey was conducted in 2015 and 2017.

Table C. Workplace injuries costs and lost time

2015 2016 2017 2018

Number of injuries 14 21 14 27

Lost workdays 213 278 77 92

Cost $107 K $115 K $75 K $65 K

Source: Bend (Oregon) Police Department

Officers also leave for reasons unrelated to the profession or the department as a whole; 

they leave because of external pressures. Often, according to the attendees, these pressures 

include “a job-family conflict” or “commuting 70–100+ miles.” One attendee explained, 

“We lose the young kids who want to go back home after they get a couple of years in, and 

they then get on with an agency closer to where they live.” Some attendees addressed the 

importance of the spouse, saying that if the spouse is unhappy, the officers then say, “We’re 

done, and we’re out.” Thus, “if the spouses don’t like them working here, I try to make sure 

that the spouses get good jobs and a good social circle too.” 

Policing scholars have pointed to the challenges of work-life balance within law 

enforcement because of the nature of the job, which often requires mandatory overtime, an 

inflexible work schedule, and changing shift work (Hilal and Litsey 2020). As a group, the 

meeting attendees were aware of the challenges of work-life balance. One stated that when 

officers “can’t get their leave like they want, working tons of mandatory overtime, they will 

look for a different position.” And another added, “We have lots of mandatory assignments 

that you have to do. Everyone has to work Christmas break. We ask a lot of our guys; there 

is mandatory overtime. I’m very sensitive to how we treat our guys. If you don’t treat each 

other with respect, how can we expect them to treat our citizens?”

Last, the group did not think that officers leaving was necessarily a bad thing. A large 

number of attendees pointed to the benefits of problem officers choosing to leave. As one 

stated, “Not all attrition is bad. We tend to think it is, but some is good. If you are producing 

really great officers and others are trying to poach them, that spreads the word. Sometimes 

it is poor performers who are leaving.” 
Why Do People Leave? 17

Regarding agency culture, an attendee stated, “People who have left, left to other agencies 

because they were not a good fit with our department culture. I think that was very helpful 

for the police leadership for them to self-weed.” Another added that some officers leave 

because “the employee made a decision that was contrary to the values of the department. 

Even if they don’t lose their job over such behavior, they choose to go somewhere else or 

leave the profession because of their poor decision-making.” Echoing this sentiment, one 

stated, “The mid-level guys we’ve lost usually come from another agency where they had a 

conflict or an issue, and they land with us, and then they move on. I suspect they will leave 

that agency for the same type of reason.” 

One chief of a smaller department stated they lost some “lateral hires” who had come from 

a much larger department. The chief acknowledged the limits smaller departments have 

sometimes in hiring, stating, “They were shady people to begin with. They did not disclose 

a lot of their background and personnel history as we should have demanded. They were 

not good hires.” Many in the group agreed with the sentiment that some officers choose 

to leave because “for the first time, they were being held accountable to a higher standard, 

which they chose not to adapt too.” This police chief, referring a small group of problem 

officers who left a year after his arrival, stated, “morale skyrocketed when they left.”

Role of Training

Of the range of topics covered during the day’s discussion, the subject of police academy 

training generated a short but robust debate. This discussion centered on the best type 

of police academy training and caused a difference of opinion. The principal mechanism 

for training police officers is through a combination of police academy and field training. 

The process is designed to teach recruits the formative knowledge and skills needed in 

preparation for a challenging career. Traditionally, police academies have placed great 

emphasis on recruit discipline in a paramilitary format (Blumberg et al. 2019), which the 

meeting attendees referred to as a “stress academy.” On the other side, attendees referred to 

an “adult-based academy,” which emphasizes the adult-learning theory concepts of critical 

thinking skills, effective communication, and emotional intelligence (Blumberg et al. 2019).

The attendees agreed that the police academy is a major source of attrition; however, they 

did not agree that this was necessarily a problem. Supporters of the stress academy approach 

argued that academy training should be the place where those who aren’t going to make 

it get weeded out. As one trainer said, “You may have a few more who quit because they 

decide that the stress involved in policing is not something they want, which is not a bad 

thing.” The same trainer added, “We are moving back to a stress academy; it is a far more 

disciplined academy. From a training perspective, our job is to produce people who can move 

into the field training and have the ability to make legal, moral, and ethical decisions under 

stress. We, as trainers, have an ethical duty to ensure that we have at least tested that ability.” 

Advocates for the stress academy believe it also better emulates policing in general. Given 

how stressful a law enforcement career can be, one attendee asked the group to consider 

when would the best time be for recruits to realize they might not be able to handle such 

stress: “Do we want recruits to figure that out on the street where there is crowd control 

and they’re getting spit on? We don’t. We want them to figure that out at basic training.”

“Waves of retirements by the baby boomer generation, 

coupled with budgeting crises experienced by many 

jurisdictions, generational differences in work preferences, 

and changing skill sets, has led to both recruitment and 

retention challenges.”
20 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

On the other hand, supporters of the adult-based academy approach believe that stress 

academies are a fairly big source of dropouts. As one attendee stated, “Traditionally, a stress 

academy was designed so that 50 percent quit on their own accord; that is not what we 

do.” Some were concerned that stress academies set up recruits for failure. One attendee 

explained that his problem with the stress academy was “seeing a lot of academic failures. 

We are seeing problems with honesty. The recruits get put on the spot and in a moment 

of weakness say the wrong thing, and they get kicked out of the academy. We are losing 

good people who are put in a stress environment and have never been put in a stress 

environment ever. Sometimes in the stress academy, we are setting up these young men 

and women for failure, and I just don’t like that.” 

According to another attendee, “I don’t like when you ask recruits a question that you 

know the answer to, that you ask in a way that is almost goading them to lie. And then 

when they take the bait, they are now out of the profession. I don’t want people who are 

going to lie in our profession, but if you train them and give them an opportunity to work 

with seasoned officers, they can understand better.” 

Research supports the important role seasoned officers can play in working with recruits. 

A study on Australian police recruits concludes that misconduct can be reduced if recruits 

are properly trained with the “right mentoring” because “senior officers may sway recruits’ 

perceptions of professional conduct (and misconduct) during police engagement” (MilesJohnson 2019, p. 11).

Despite the disagreement on the best type of academy structure, the attendees widely 

agreed on several issues, such as that “it costs a lot to recruit and hire” and that “we are 

under a lot of pressure; we don’t want to lose people.” Understanding what leads recruits to 

drop out after enduring a rigorous screening process is a potent avenue for future research. 

More studies are needed to understand the dropout and failure rate of both academy and 

field training, as well as the differential impact on female recruits (Cordner 2020). 

The attendees also agreed that the terminology of “stress academy” and “adult-based 

academy” is flawed. As one stated, “I don’t like the word stress academy,” and another 

replied, “I agree, stress academy is the wrong term.” This view is understandable, as 

academies generally do not aim to cause stress for stress sake or to avoid it entirely; 
Role of Training 21

rather, they aim to prepare recruits for the conditions they will face on the job while 

also building a high level of knowledge and esprit de corps. In reality, fully one-third of 

academies in this country work to balance both learning modalities (Reaves 2016).

Many in the group, regardless of training academy type, experienced similar reasons for 

attrition: lack of physical fitness and inability to pass qualifying exams. According to one 

attendee, “We lose far more to an entry physical fitness test than to academic. It is far more 

likely for us to lose a 21-year-old male recruit for failing the physical fitness standard than it 

is a 35-year-old male. We lose more males than females. It is really frustrating for us.” And 

another stated, “We have people who just cannot get through firearms training, which is 

kinda surprising to me.” 

Last, many attendees agreed that there is not any long-term data on what type of academy 

works. In the words of one of the scholars at the meeting, “We have very little evidence, 

from a research perspective, on what the long-term consequences of these different 

academies are. Our measurements are very short term. Are there strategies happening in 

academies that are very successful for one type of cop but are leaving out other people who 

could be just as good? You can have a very successful process that gets you the same kind of 

people and, because of voluntary dropouts, completely takes out a portion of the population 

that you would wish were cops.” Another attendee added, “We need to be aware of what 

success means for each department. Are we creating a situation where we are designing out 

potential success?” 

These last potential avenues of future research—what leads recruits to drop out after 

enduring a rigorous screening process, what is the differential impact on female recruits, 

and what are the long-term consequences of these different academies—would be beneficial 

to more than just the smaller and rural departments represented at this meeting. Regardless 

of reasons why officers leave a department or the profession or what type of police academy 

they were trained at, the views of the attendees can be summed up in the sentiment of one, 

who stated, “They leave because we fail them.” 

23

Challenges to Recruitment and Retention

Many law enforcement executives would agree that “there’s no management issue more 

perplexing and difficult than recruiting and retention” (Moore 2007, p.14). Both the 

policing community and the U.S. Department of Justice have taken an active role in 

examining the twin problems of recruitment and retention in policing by holding meetings 

and releasing reports examining the particular challenges with these issues (see Orrick 2007; 

Wilson et.al. 2010; Copple 2017; Morison 2017; ICMA and Vera Institute of Justice 2018; 

PERF 2019). These reports provide a clear picture of the difficulties law enforcement faces 

in finding qualified applicants, shepherding them through training, and maintaining police 

workforce levels in numbers sufficient for meeting the increasing demands on departments. 

According to the Center for State and Local Government Excellence, jurisdictions have 

a harder time filling law enforcement positions than any other public sector position 

(SLGE 2019). Furthermore, in 2019, the Police Executive Research Forum published its 

extensive analysis on the policing workforce, which found a triple threat in that agencies 

are experiencing significant declines in officer applications, losing officers before retirement 

age, and losing a growing number of officers to retirement (PERF 2019). Research also 

reports that waves of retirements by the baby boomer generation, coupled with budgeting 

crises experienced by many jurisdictions, generational differences in work preferences, 

and changing skill sets, has led to both recruitment and retention challenges (Wilson et al. 

2010). All of these issues can be especially challenging for smaller and rural departments. 

While some research notes that the increasingly negative view of law enforcement by the 

community presents the biggest challenge to recruitment (Copple 2017), other research 

finds that law enforcement executives and other stakeholders recognize the need to hire 

officers who reflect the values of the community, improve the efficiency of the hiring 

process, and aim for greater diversity and inclusiveness (Morison 2017). In addition, 

a survey—comprising responses from city managers and county administrators, police 

officers and chiefs, and community members in 25 jurisdictions representing a cross section 

of small, medium, and large communities—found that building community trust was 

considered the most important priority for police departments (ICMA and Vera Institute of 

Justice 2018). 
24 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Efforts to characterize problems with recruitment and retention have pointed to officers and 

agencies not fitting well together; generational differences; problems with screening; and 

challenges filling vacancies because of competition, officer attrition, and retirement. These 

studies have largely focused on the common challenges departments face across the policing 

spectrum, from major urban police forces, to county sheriffs, to suburban departments, to 

rural agencies. However, while some challenges are universally experienced by departments 

of all sizes and jurisdictions (e.g., attracting qualified applicants), some are exacerbated by 

being smaller and more rural (e.g., lack of adequate housing). 

Smaller and rural agencies are similar in that they have smaller staffing levels than their 

urban counterparts; otherwise, they can be very different from one another. One study on 

policing in small-town departments notes a “big-city bias” in policing research, with small 

departments often lumped into a “single non-urban” category (Leiderbach and Frank 2003). 

The same study also notes that small departments are not a homogenous group, and thus 

the nature of policing differs significantly across these smaller departments. 

The law enforcement agencies represented at the meeting illustrate the diverse nature 

of smaller departments. Some are small and rural with large coverage areas, some are in 

expensive resort towns, some are isolated and largely inaccessible, and some are small 

but surrounded by bigger departments. In addition, policing scholars note that smaller 

departments often handle a broader array of duties and tend to spend more time on service 

and crime prevention as opposed to the law enforcement duties that consume much of the 

time of officers in urban police departments (Holmes, Painter, and Smith 2017; Leiderbach 

and Frank 2003). 

The attendees discussed the specific challenges their respective departments were 

experiencing in recruiting or retaining officers. When asked about the biggest obstacles and 

challenges, attendees largely focused on the problem of fit and culture. Research on smaller 

“Smaller and rural agencies are similar in that they have 

smaller staffing levels than their urban counterparts; 

otherwise, they can be very different from one another.”
Challenges to Recruitment and Retention 25

and more rural police departments finds that they are more likely to be viewed positively 

and are more trusted when they are located in socially integrated areas and seen as safe by 

the community (Holmes, Painter, and Smith 2017). In addition, officers in smaller and more 

rural areas are more likely to have encounters with people they know and are more likely 

to be seen as a part of the community that they patrol (Leiderbach and Frank 2003). 

Given that community interactions are often qualitatively different than in large 

departments (where officers are not as socially enmeshed with the community they 

serve), it is not surprising that a majority of the law enforcement executives at the meeting 

stated that finding recruits who are a good fit and adapt to the particular culture of the 

department is particularly challenging. The attendees wondered, “Are recruits coming 

into the profession with the right purpose?” Many felt that officers should approach law 

enforcement as a calling. As one stated, “This is a true calling. There are a lack of individuals 

listening to that call into this noble profession.” Another stated, “You have to have a 

preponderance of your officers view the job as a calling.” 

On a similar note, attendees felt that character was also important. One stated, “We hire 

for competency, and we fire for character. Recruitment needs to place more emphasis on 

character. We don’t focus on that when we hire, on the intrinsic draw. We are still focused 

on the competency side of the house. Maybe we should shift our perspective.” 

However, attendees also felt that the culture of the department—i.e., having a strong sense 

of community among staff—is important as both a recruitment and a retention tool. As one 

attendee said, “It’s that strength of that community within your organization that keeps 

them there, keeps them well, embraces them when they need it most.” Furthermore, that 

level of pride in and commitment to a department is visible externally. That’s when, as one 

attendee stated, “everyone in our agency is a recruiter.” 

Some attendees emphasized the importance of the agency reflecting the community it 

serves. “My ultimate goal,” said one attendee, “is to have a department that looks like 

a mirror of our city, where people look into it and see themselves. Quite frankly, that is 

difficult to do, so we focus on cultural competency and work with our psychologist to try 

to find those people who fit our profile.” Another added, “if recruits embrace the diversity 

of the agency and the community, they tend to stay. They have to have the emotional 

intelligence piece. They are able to connect with others who don’t believe like they do. 

Recruits who can’t do that self-weed themselves out and go to other agencies.”
26 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Many agreed with one attendee’s statement that “if they fit, then they stay” and felt that 

the key to achieving this fit is through community connection. According to one, “When I 

took over the agency that I’m currently at, the officers there were pretty convinced that the 

community hated them, that the city council hated them. When you have that sense of dire 

in your mind going to work, you’re not going to survive. We changed that by getting them 

involved in the community, rewriting the narrative, and owning the narrative with the 

community. We’ve seen a 180-degree shift in the thought process in the officers about how 

they are looked upon in their own community.” 

Returning to the idea of “if they fit, then they stay,” research argues that different 

communities have different views on what policing means for them, and thus departments 

should be aggressive in “selecting-in” those who fit rather than “selecting-out” those who 

do not (McCafferty 2003, p. 86). In addition to selecting-in, departments should try to 

understand who stays and who leaves. Research contends that departments should focus 

their attention on understanding the reasons the best officers in the department stay, rather 

than worrying about why people are leaving (Miller 2018). Then departments should use 

this information to personalize the recruiting process in order to find the people who best fit 

the department (Miller 2018). 

In addition, a survey of small, medium, and large law enforcement agencies recommends 

that in order to achieve a diverse workforce, departments should use a range of recruiting 

methods (ICMA and Vera Institute of Justice 2018). These methods include using both 

widely broadcast strategies (such as print, online, and billboard) and more narrowly 

targeted strategies for specific populations (such as women, veterans, and Latino and Black 

communities). 

One presenter at the meeting, Dr. Elizabeth Linos, an assistant professor of Public Policy at 

the University of California, Berkeley, shared how departments can make a small change 

to their recruitment methods to experience a significant impact using a “nudge” approach. 

In particular, Dr. Linos’s research shows that traditional methods for recruiting officers 

emphasizes characteristics, such as readiness to serve, that do not necessarily expand the 

pool of recruits. However, when departments target other intrinsic motivations, such as 

looking for a long-term career, they can expand the recruitment pool (see the sidebar on 

page 27).
Challenges to Recruitment and Retention 27

Using a “nudge” approach to recruit for public service

Dr. Elizabeth Linos, an assistant professor of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley, is an expert in 

the area of behavioral sciences and has combined the study of psychology and econometrics to assist others 

in making data-driven decisions in order to understand what works and what does not work in recruiting and 

retaining people for government positions. In particular, she studies how using a “nudge” approach, which 

examines identifying and tweaking small pain points in a process, can prompt significant improvement within 

an area such as recruitment. In law enforcement recruitment, the process includes deciding to apply, passing 

tests and assessments, completing training, and working as an officer. Dr. Linos has studied the first point in 

the process, and the decision to apply is affected by a series of systemic factors often beyond the control of 

the department, such as salary, job market competition within law enforcement and the private sector, and 

organization factors such as, “Will I belong, will I make friends, and what will I actually do every day?”

Figure 1. Postcards to help nudge diversity

In a study for the Chattanooga 

(Tennessee) Police Department (CPD), 

Dr. Linos examined if it was possible 

to nudge diversity. The majority 

White, majority male department 

had been trying with little success 

to increase its diversity to better 

reflect the racial, ethnic, and gender 

composition of the community. 

In an effort to broaden the scope 

of who might consider a career in 

policing, Dr. Lino’s team sent one of 

four postcards to all registered voters 

in Chattanooga (see figure 1). The 

postcards featured a Black officer in the department and were identical except for the message on the front 

and back of the card. The messages were as follows:

• Are you ready to serve?

• What would it mean to you?

• Are you up to the challenge?

• Looking for a long-term career?

The postcards with the “are you ready to serve” and “what would it mean to you” messages did not increase 

applications to the department, but those who received the “are you up to the challenge” and “looking 

for a long-term career” postcards were three times more likely to apply, and African-Americans were four 

times more likely to apply. Dr. Linos contends that when it comes to the decision to apply for a job in law 

enforcement, those who want to serve their community are already applying; thus, departments should tap 

into the other intrinsic motivations for applying. Furthermore, it is possible to use this data-driven approach 

to test every single part of the recruitment process, examining where the drop-offs are happening and what 

small tweaks can be made to fix it.

 (Photo: Courtesy of Dr. Elizabeth Linos)
28 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Another area in which culture and fit intersects with recruiting and retention challenges is 

in generational expectations. Some attendees wondered if generational differences explain 

the lack of calling and difficulties associated with fit and culture in the smaller and more 

rural departments. One chief noted, “I think that for our generation or older, that life 

calling was a singular purpose: ‘I’m going to be a police officer and that will be my focus.’” 

Another added, “For the next generation, it’s not so singular. They want to be great friends, 

great parents, in addition to the calling. We need to prove that we can give them that 

work-life, that we can respect that they’re passionate about police work but that they are 

also passionate about other aspects of their life.” Dr. Penny Phelps, the meeting moderator, 

framed the issue of generational expectations by asking, “Is our profession keeping up with 

the times?” She added, “The belief that you are going to hire somebody and you are going 

to keep them for 20 years so they can retire with a gold watch—you need to rethink that.” 

Understanding generational differences, especially millennials, seemed to confound some in 

the group. They wondered if younger generations are not as ready to handle the demands 

of policing. One attendee stated that the millennial generation is “emotionally immature. 

They’ve been sheltered by the helicopter parents and are simply not ready to be spit on, 

yelled at, hit in the face. They’ve been told their whole life you can’t box, can’t fight, can’t 

even defend yourself in school nowadays without getting expelled.” Another attendee 

added, “They are the ‘why’ generation; they want to know why they have to do something 

before they do it. Sometimes you just need to follow.” 

Others in the group, however, argued that millennials bring a strength to departments 

because they are not afraid to question traditions. According to one attendee, “Millennials 

are coming in asking, ‘Can policing be different?’ Not asking to work less, but differently.” 

The group also noted that this generation is not afraid to push for change: e.g., asking, “Why 

can’t I job share?” Millennials are also less likely to accept the answer of “this is how it’s 

always done.” Attendees also noted that millennials “have a free-flowing thought process, 

and we can’t shut that down.” 

Research argues that each generation of officers is defined by unique attributes specific 

to that generation (McCafferty 2003). The baby boomers (born 1946–1964),3

 growing up 

in the Cold War between the U.S. and Russia, value discipline and respect for authority 

(McCafferty 2003). Generation X (born 1965–1980), having been raised in an environment 

where crime, gangs, and drugs were more prevalent than previous generations, are not 

idealists but are “practical strategists and good negotiators” (McCafferty 2003, p. 80). 

3. All generational birthdate ranges are those used by the Pew Research Center 2015.
Challenges to Recruitment and Retention 29

Millennials (born 1981–1997) value high ethical standards and “are committed to being the 

next great generation to turn around all the ‘wrong’ they see” (Darst 2016, p. 23). Research 

also argues that millennials’ embrace of technology means they offer a range of skills that 

make them appealing recruits (Darst 2016). Understanding the unique characteristics of 

each generation would allow departments to adapt their hiring and workforce expectations 

to the strengths of that generation, allowing them to keep up with the times. 

Compounding the generational divide is the lack of opportunities for younger generations 

to advance to senior-level positions. Some in law enforcement are working longer, 30–40 

years, rather than the norm of retiring after 20 years (Darst 2016). Thus, not only do 

younger generations of officers have fewer opportunities to move into upper management, 

but there are also fewer openings in the field (Darst 2016). Research also contends that the 

paramilitary model of policing, embraced by baby boomers, is outdated and that policing 

needs to adapt to “the talents of the new generation, such as involving them in community 

engagement and problem solving and encouraging use of social media to get real-time 

information out to the public” (Batts, Smoot, and Scrivner 2012, p. 13).

What Works? Building a Roadmap to Attract 

Applicants and Retain Officers

After an extensive discussion on the difficulties the departments face in recruiting and 

retaining officers, the meeting attendees turned their attention to an idea exchange on the 

successful practices they use to attract applicants and retain those they have hired. The 

group uses a variety of strategies that are centered on three basic themes:

1. Foster community support.

2. Reputation matters.

3. Use all the tools at your disposal.

If the meeting participants were to sum up what works, they would invariably say that the 

key is being responsive to those you serve and flexible in meeting the needs of your staff. As 

a group, they provide proof that small, incremental change can make a big difference.

The meeting participants also recognize the importance of fostering community support 

as a key to their departments’ success. The group stated several practices they use to foster 

such support: e.g., “showing off our staff to the community and letting the community get 

an inside look at the department” through such avenues as a citizen’s academy, citizens 

on patrol, monthly community meetings including coffee with a cop and pizza with the 

police, annual open houses, and encouraging volunteers to help within the department. 

In addition, these departments nurture positive community connections through strong 

relationships with the local faith organizations and being “very intentional in encouraging 

the city council to get into the department.” 

Some pointed to efforts within the training academy to instill an appreciation for differences 

across the community. One department, in addition to state-mandated training and before 

field training, requires another 16 weeks of training during which recruits receive classes on 

generational poverty from a local college and complete placements in service organizations 

throughout the city, such as homeless shelters and soup kitchens, so they are “exposed to 

some different walks of life.” Several other attendees mentioned programs they use that 

bring in community members from marginalized communities so that recruits can have a 

bilateral exchange and internalize “whatever comes out as a direct result of the people in 

the room.” Another attendee added that they bring community members into the academy 

classroom to “get their perspective, and it is brutally honest.”

In some of these jurisdictions, many of the officers live in the community, and attendees 

saw that as positive. According to one, “They feel like they are valued as a community 

member and as a police officer.” Another attendee shared how the department encourages 
32 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

its officers to attend family events, such as a kid’s basketball game, and stated, “We give 

them the opportunity to go and do those things, and if a call comes out, go take the call. But 

if there’s no calls pending for service, I don’t expect you to be anywhere except with your 

family. We are a tight-knit community, so people like the officers siting in the stands. Being 

small, everyone knows everyone else. Sometimes tempers flare at the baseball game; people 

feel better having an officer sitting in the stands.” 

Others noted that not being able to live in the community can pose hardships for their 

officers. Some of these officers, especially those who work in resort towns, cannot afford the 

cost of housing and thus have to commute significant distances. Others noted that for family 

reasons, their officers are residing in outlying areas. As noted in the section “Switching 

agencies,” these long commutes can be a reason why officers leave the agency. 

However, some of the agencies have found workarounds for those who commute long 

distances. One agency offers different work schedule options for their officers, giving them 

the choice of three 12-hour days or four 10-hour days per week. They have found that 

those who live in outlying areas prefer the three-day schedule. Another attendee noted 

that they have a two-bedroom apartment bunkhouse donated by the city for officers who 

commute long distances. In this particular jurisdiction, they created the bunkhouse in 

memory of an officer who was killed in a car accident after working a long shift and then 

falling asleep on the commute home.

Attendees also recognized the importance of reputation as a tool for attracting applicants 

and retaining officers. One stated, “Our reputation in the state is pretty strong. Last testing 

for one position, I had 73 apply and a list of 10 great candidates. We are a very good agency 

and always have been.” Echoing the importance of reputation, another attendee added, 

“We surveyed the last 12 people we hired and asked them what was the number one reason 

they chose our department over others. Nine of the 12 said reputation of the department, 

so legitimacy matters. You need to have legitimacy in your department before you can have 

legitimacy in your community.” 

The group felt that the importance of fostering community relationships equaled that of 

fostering “pride in ownership” within the department. Participants pointed to creating a 

team mentality within the department by “developing people.” For example, one attendee 

said departments need to encourage officers to do more than “just write tickets and handle 

calls, [because] who wants to do that all the time? The recruits coming in are intelligent 

kids; they want to be challenged. If you don’t give them something to challenge them, then 

they will go find something else that does. Give them that pride in ownership.”
What Works? Building a Roadmap to Attract Applicants and Retain Officers 33

In order to challenge recruits and cultivate pride, the group pointed to the importance 

of using all the tools at their disposal. In addition to prioritizing officer wellness (see 

the sidebar “A focus on officer wellness in Bend, Oregon” on page 13), the participants 

emphasized having open communication, leveraging a department’s size to create 

opportunities for specialization, using budget allowances in creative ways, using both media 

appearances and social media to promote their departments, and providing perks to the 

officers when possible. Regarding the first emphasis, those in attendance have found that 

encouraging open communication is an important tool in their arsenal. Attendees noted 

that communication needs to start with the chief, which sets the tone and then filters 

down from leadership to sergeants to officers. One chief stated, “You get good, valuable 

information for why employees are leaving, but I look at why are they staying? I’m meeting 

with my officers and entire staff one-on-one every six months. It is confidential, stays 

within my office. They feel like their opinions are valued, and this gives me the opportunity 

to see what is keeping them as opposed to waiting until they leave to find out why they’re 

leaving.” Related to open lines of communication is having the command staff, including 

the chief, work the midnight patrol shift every six months; “it gives us an opportunity to 

interact and have face time with the officers.”

Some attendees were able to reframe a systemic challenge their department faces—having 

limited ability to provide specialization—into a net positive. Some leverage the size of their 

agency to promote opportunities for specialization. For example, one chief stated, “We’ll 

have a candidate say ‘I want to be a K-9 officer’ right off. While we cannot give them that, 

we can guarantee that they work with the K-9 unit as soon as they are done with the 

FTO program. If a candidate is interested in investigations, they’ll go with a detective 

to the homicide conference. Whatever they want to do, we help them get there. If that 

means we have to change their schedule or what have you, we want them to specialize.” 

Those from larger departments acknowledged they cannot provide the same 

opportunities, but they use other techniques to provide the ability to specialize. One of 

the bigger departments stated that they require two years on patrol, but they use those 

two years to build “a foundation on how to be a good police officer. We can offer a lot 

of diversity: we have K-9, detective bureaus, community service officers, bike officers. 

We try to find out what they want to do, give them the foundation, and then we offer 

that opportunity to work within those sections.” Another department puts term limits on 

their specialty teams, allowing 3–5 years on a team in order to create turnover, as well as 

giving officers one to two weeks a year to try different assignments. Other departments use 

a “career development matrix” and mentoring to provide officers with the ability to develop 

their career in the manner they want.
34 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Some law enforcement executives in the group have found that budget transparency has 

been an effective tool in fostering trust in the department. One chief explained that his 

department takes advantage of any end-of-year monies, when available, to pay bonuses to 

the officers. The chief noted that they do not always have these monies to distribute, but 

the officers appreciate the bonus and the budget transparency. This executive feels that 

this bonus system also allows the department to compete with private sector jobs. Several 

attendees stated that all the officers in their departments have their own training budget to 

use as they see fit. One stated, “If they better themselves, it betters us. We’ve seen a huge 

turnaround in our officers since establishing individual training budgets. It has attracted 

applicants to us. The last three guys to finish the academy said, ‘The ability to have access to 

a fund that I can control where my career goes is huge.’”

Regarding media appearances and social media, several meeting participants use them to 

engage the community and bolster the reputation of the department. These tools include 

posting on social media accounts, doing the lip sync challenge, and buying their own 

domain for the department so they have a “one-stop shop where you can learn about the 

department and apply for jobs.” Some have empowered officers across the department to 

post to social media, which according to one attendee, “sometimes feels risky because most 

departments only let two or three people post. But now, instead of just my voice, I have all 

those voices.” Another law enforcement executive noted that he is “on the news at least 

once a week” and “never says no to an interview, which helps with recruiting because they 

feel like they know us, what we stand for.” 

Meeting participants found that providing perks is also important for cultivating pride. Some 

departments provide cellular phones so officers can post directly to social media. Others 

have noticed that new recruits, especially younger recruits, will judge a department based 

on the quality and age of the equipment. One stated, “Our guys get new cars and new rifles 

with all the ammo they could desire. The lateral guys notice that too.” Others use a takehome car policy, which they find “has been very successful as a recruiting tool, and data 

shows it boosts longevity of the cars because they take better care of them now.”
Conclusion

Undoubtedly, all meeting participants would agree that there is “no simple formula for 

improving police recruitment and retention efforts” (PERF 2019, p. 12). Indeed, through 

discussion and an exchange of ideas, it is clear that not a single system or practice can 

suit every department. The key to improving recruitment and retention is flexibility and 

adapting to the short- and long-term needs of the department and the community. 

Throughout the meeting, the fact that recruitment and retention are not distinct issues 

was clear. The decisions agencies make to help them retain their top talent are the same 

ones that help them attract top applicants. And it was noteworthy not only that many 

of the leaders conducted exit interviews with officers who resigned to better understand 

why they leave, but also that some made a point to regularly talk with their existing staff 

to understand why they stay. Without this second piece, it can become easy to dismiss 

departures as something the agency cannot control—especially when many relate to 

external factors such as family or promotional opportunities. But the officers who stay, 

especially those who could be successful elsewhere, provide critical information on what 

makes an agency a good place to work, and that information can likely be leveraged for 

recruitment purposes.

The agencies that were successful in both recruiting and retaining officers recognized 

that while an officer’s fit with a department is largely agency specific and dependent 

on the department’s culture, on the community, and on the interests and talents of the 

officers themselves, there are some universal qualities that departments seek in officers. 

These qualities include integrity, strong interpersonal skills, emotional maturity, and good 

judgement. And these same qualities are the ones that meeting attendees expressed the 

most frustration about, recognizing that hiring criteria and processes are often misaligned 

with the internal characteristics that make for an excellent officer. 

Those in attendance also emphasized the importance of leadership within the department. 

In particular, poor leadership can be particularly destructive for an agency’s ability to recruit 

and retain its workforce. However, strong leadership that values community support and 

fosters the department’s reputation is seen as a key to successful recruitment and retention.

The departments represented at this meeting, all small and rural agencies, were examples 

of those who are not firmly rooted in past practices at the expense of innovation, nor are 

they embracing change for change’s sake. Rather, these agencies recognize that a good law 

enforcement agency reflects the community it serves, takes care of the people who work for 

it, and understands there is not a one-size-fits-all solution.

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List of Forum Attendees

Fred Beck

Lieutenant, Springfield (Missouri) Police 

Department

Robert Brown

Chief of Police, Duncanville (Texas) Police 

Department

Helene Bushwick

Supervisory Senior Policy Analyst, Office of 

Community Oriented Policing Services

Jeff A. Caponera

Chief of Police, Anna (Texas) Police Department

Charles Cook

Deputy Chief of Police, Pasco (Washington) Police 

Department

Kieran Donahue

Sheriff, Canyon County (Idaho) Sheriff’s Office

Fred Farris

Chief of Police, City of Goddard (Kansas) Police 

Department

Jim Ferraris

Chief of Police, Woodburn (Oregon) Police 

Department

Matt Giordano

Executive Director, Arizona Peace Officer 

Standards and Training Board

David Gray

Lieutenant, Quartzsite (Arizona) Police 

Department

Iri Guerra

Sergeant, Clovis (California) Police Department

Steve Isbell

Chief of Police, Dyersburg (Tennessee) Police 

Department

Karl Jegeris

Chief of Police, Rapid City (South Dakota) Police 

Department

Matthew J. Joski

Sheriff, Kewaunee County (Wisconsin) Sheriff’s 

Department

Dr. Elizabeth Linos

Assistant Professor of Public Policy, University of 

California, Berkeley

Lori Luhnow

Chief of Police, Santa Barbara (California) Police 

Department

Sean Marschke

Chief of Police, Sturtevant (Wisconsin) Police 

Department

Bobby Martin

Chief of Police, Snowflake (Arizona) Police 

Department

Kevin McKinney

Lieutenant, Elko County (Nevada) Sheriff’s Office

Andrew T. Merrill

Captain, Alaska State Troopers

Kathryn Mone

Chief of Police, Northampton (New Hampshire) 

Police Department

Evie Monnington-Taylor

Senior Advisor, Behavioral Insights Team
42 Recruiting and Retaining Officers IN SMALL AND RURAL AGENCIES

Jim Porter

Chief of Police, Bend (Oregon) Police Department

Susan Rockett

Chief of Police, Mexico (Missouri) Department of 

Public Safety

Jeff Schemenauer

Sergeant, Douglas County (Nevada) Sheriff’s 

Office

Chris Schroeder

Army Reserve Ambassador, Office of the Chief of 

the Army Reserve

Mike Sherlock

Executive Director, Nevada Commission on Peace 

Officer Standards and Training

Deborah Spence

Assistant Director, Office of Community Oriented 

Policing Services

Dr. Lance Spivey

Chief of Police, St. Johns (Arizona) Police 

Department

Jennifer Styles

Project Manager, International Association of 

Chiefs of Police

Dale A. Walters

Chief of Police, Globe (Arizona) Police Department

Jeremy Warnick

Director of Communications, Cambridge 

(Massachusetts) Police Department

Dr. Jeremy Wilson

Professor, Michigan State University, School of 

Criminal Justice
About the COPS Office

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is the component of the 

U.S. Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing by 

the nation’s state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies through information 

and grant resources.

Community policing begins with a commitment to building trust and mutual respect 

between police and communities. It supports public safety by encouraging all stakeholders 

to work together to address our nation’s crime challenges. When police and communities 

collaborate, they more effectively address underlying issues, change negative behavioral 

patterns, and allocate resources. 

Rather than simply responding to crime, community policing focuses on preventing it 

through strategic problem-solving approaches based on collaboration. The COPS Office 

awards grants to hire community policing officers and support the development and testing 

of innovative policing strategies. COPS Office funding also provides training and technical 

assistance to community members and local government leaders, as well as all levels of law 

enforcement. 

Since 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to add community policing 

officers to the nation’s streets, enhance crime fighting technology, support crime prevention 

initiatives, and provide training and technical assistance to help advance community 

policing. Other achievements include the following:

•	 To date, the COPS Office has funded the hiring of approximately 130,000 additional 

officers by more than 13,000 of the nation’s 18,000 law enforcement agencies in 

both small and large jurisdictions.

•	 Nearly 700,000 law enforcement personnel, community members, and government 

leaders have been trained through COPS Office–funded training organizations.

•	 To date, the COPS Office has distributed more than eight million topic-specific 

publications, training curricula, white papers, and resource CDs and flash drives.

•	 The COPS Office also sponsors conferences, round tables, and other forums focused 

on issues critical to law enforcement.

COPS Office information resources, covering a wide range of community policing topics 

such as school and campus safety, violent crime, and officer safety and wellness, can be 

downloaded via the COPS Office’s home page, www.cops.usdoj.gov. This website is also the 

grant application portal, providing access to online application forms.


In December 2019, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services held a day-long forum 

to discuss the challenges of law enforcement recruitment and retention and specifically 

focused on these issues in relation to smaller and more rural law enforcement agencies. The 32 

participants included police chiefs, captains, lieutenants, academic experts, researchers, and 

agency directors of state police standards.

The forum’s small size allowed for a wide-ranging discussion that focused on the qualities that 

make an effective police officer, an in-depth examination of why people leave a department, 

the most significant challenges to recruiting and retaining officers, and a brainstorming 

session on the range of strategies these departments use to attract and keep officers. The 

result was an exchange of ideas and success stories that reflected the unique regional and size 

differences between the departments. 

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

145 N Street NE

Washington, DC 20530

To obtain details about COPS Office programs, 

call the COPS Office Response Center at 800-421-6770.

Visit the COPS Office online at www.cops.usdoj.gov.

e072030958

Published 2020