2025 Strategic Focus
In 2023, a cross-section of 30 department members participated in HPD’s Strategic Planning Retreat for the 2023-2025 period. The department revised our Mission, Vision, and Values to reflect what we believed was important to us and how our actions aligned with those beliefs. Additionally, we identified both short-term and long-term objectives and assigned champions to each of them.
Retention
- Maintain 95% staffing for three years
- Fill specialty positions
Community Engagement
- Improve community engagement
- Co-responder program
Retention
Our goals were to be at 95% of staffing levels and to fill all the vacancies in specialty positions, like Detective, Community Resource, School Resource, and Training. We were at 94% staffing by the end of the year - 107 of 114 sworn positions filled. And our retention levels were that we hired more officers than left (hired 11, 7 retired or resigned) - an improvement from prior years. there was a 58% increase in retention and a 78% decrease in attrition.
Community Engagement
Community Events
- 2025 National Night Out’s format changed to a stationary location at the Ralph Sampson Park Spray Grounds, in conjunction with our convoy to various neighborhoods. The police cooked food for the public, had a touch-a-truck, and various other activities. The goal for next year is to make a bigger stationary event.
- Detective Jewell, Juliana McGrath, and Sergeant Fowler began offering scam awareness and prevention classes and presented for numerous programs. The goal for next year is to expand the program and offer this training to more groups.
- The Community Police Academy had our biggest turnout in the past few years, with 22 community members graduating from the 10-week academy. Numerous HPD officers and professional staff members spent time each Tuesday teaching the classes.
School Resource
- We had six School Resource Officers in our schools. The two officers at Rocktown High
School are funded by a state grant.
- Conducted school safety assessments at all our K-12 schools.
- Officers assisted with fundraising for "Bolt's Closet," a Harrisonburg High School
program started by teachers who saw a need to provide personal hygiene products to
students who could not afford them.
- Officers hosted a "Stuff a Trunk" event where they collected donations outside of a
business, which was then given to "Bolt's Closet". Our goal is to continue partnering with the schools to provide resources to continue
the program.
Co-responder Program
In September 2025, Harrisonburg Police Department initiated a police-mental health crisis response program aimed at assisting law enforcement officers to better assist individuals in crisis. The department hired Raz Ahmed, mental health professional, to respond with officers on mental health and other crisis-related calls for service. Raz assists with crisis intervention and provides additional screening at the call location to reduce unnecessary hospitalization, subsequent law enforcement encounters, and use or force. From September 2025 to December 2025, 33 community members received a field assessment or screening for mental illness. 21 incidents were resolved on scene without taking the person into custody, six voluntarily went to the Emergency Department, and six were taken into emergency custody.
Grant Funding
Combatting Hate Crimes- $32,000
Funding Agency- DCJS
Annual grant funds to provide police security at Beth El Congregation, the Chabad House, and the Islamic Association.
School Resource Officers- $117,712
Funding Agency- DCJS
Annual grant funds to provide two School Resource Officers to the new Rocktown High School. These positions will be funded from the city budget when the grant funds are no longer available.
First responder Wellness- $30,000
Funding Agency- DCJS
One-time grant to set up a wellness program for police officers, focusing on stress management, peer support, facility dog training, and yoga instruction.
DMV Highway Safety- $45,425
Funding Agency- VA DMV
Selective Enforcement patrols with zero tolerance to enforce speed, occupant protection, pedestrian and bike safety, and alcohol violations.
Violence Against Women- $50,000
Funding Agency- DCJS
Funding for a detective to focus on crimes involving violence against women and sexual assault. This position will be funded from the city budget when the grant funds are no longer available.
Connect and Protect- $550,000
Funding Agency- DOJ
Funding for a mental health clinician and a co-responder to assist patrol officers when responding to incidents where providing clinical services is a more appropriate response than law enforcement action.
BYRNE LE Equipment- $56,047
Funding Agency- DOJ
Addition of pedestrian walk-through sections for crowd control barricades; training equipment; digital evidence forensic lab equipment upgrades.
Statistics
2025 IBR ststistics can be found here: 2025 IBR Statistics
