Born for Law Enforcement

For 27 ½ years, Dr. Patrick Oliver, director of Cedarville’s criminal justice program, served in various roles in law enforcement: a trooper with the Ohio State Highway Patrol, ranger chief with the Cleveland Metropolitan Parks, an officer with the Cleveland Division of Police, and then the city of Cleveland’s first African-American police chief. He later served as police chief in Grandview Heights, Ohio, and Fairborn, Ohio.

Over the last 15 years, God has used Patrick to establish the criminal justice program at Cedarville, which has produced police officers, parole officers, intelligence analysts, and forensic scientists who are committed to the safety and well-being of communities, cities, and the country.

In addition to these influential roles, Patrick was recently appointed as the lead consultant to Ohio’s newly formed Office of Law Enforcement Recruitment, where he will be able to shape the way that law enforcement leaders throughout the state select officers.

Patrick credits his father, a career police officer, for being a powerful example who influenced his career path. Ultimately, however, he credits his Heavenly Father for giving him the passion to serve and protect. As Patrick says, “Law enforcement is what I was born to do.”

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Patrick is the founder of a mentoring organization, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Professionals, or NOBLE.

Patrick is a firm believer that for humanity the “heart of the problem is the problem of the heart,” and cites Jeremiah 17:9 for evidence.