Charles County, MD…Charles County Sheriff Troy D. Berry has announced a partnership with the 30×30 Initiative, a coalition of more than 150 police leaders, researchers, and professional organizations who have joined together to pledge to advance the representation and experiences of women in policing agencies across the United States and work toward increasing women in police recruit classes to 30% by 2030.

Nationwide, women comprise just 13 percent of sworn law enforcement personnel and only three percent of leadership positions. In signing the 30×30 Pledge, policing agencies agree to report on their efforts to identify and address any obstacles that may affect female officers in recruitment and throughout their careers. 

The Charles County Sheriff’s Office has an authorized strength of 319 sworn police officers with 11% being women. “We are constantly recruiting people to join our agency and by signing onto the 30x30 pledge, we hope to encourage women to consider policing – a profession that sometimes may be overlooked or not considered,” said Sheriff Berry.

The 30×30 pledge is a flexible framework that encourages agencies to share their progress reports with other agencies involved in the initiative and to help foster knowledge throughout the 30×30 network and beyond. From these reports, participating agencies will share promising practices, learn from one another, and develop programs and initiatives to address potential barriers to women’s advancement.

The CCSO’s Background and Recruiting Supervisor, Stephine Gregory, learned about the 30x30 initiative and presented it to the Agency. “We are always looking for innovative ways to attract people to policing and this initiative has shown to be a helpful resource to other law enforcement agencies,” said Ms. Gregory.

To learn more about the 30x30 initiative, click on this link: 30x30 Initiative.  To see some of our female officers serving our Charles County communities, watch this video: https://youtu.be/B9QgVaS1hhQ. To apply for the Charles County Sheriff’s Office, click here: Application.