Cultural Competency in Law Enforcement: Assessing Cultural Competence Levels among College Campus Police Departments

The cultural competence levels present in public organizations and agencies are a significant part of serving citizen populations. This area of research has yet to receive adequate attention from professional and academic disciplines like public administration, and law enforcement. This study investigates the existing research in the area of cultural competence and public service. In an effort to determine how culturally competent policies can improve service delivery among law enforcement professionals; three college campus police departments participated in cultural competence assessments. Based on the results of these findings recommendations were developed to guide college campus police departments toward improved cultural competence levels and better service delivery. The conclusions of this study point to the importance of leadership knowledge of cultural competence, the need for culturally competent Human Resource practices, and selecting the proper method of administration when conducting cultural competence assessments