ONE POLICE PLAZA — The NYPD has tapped a former Denver police captain as its new training czar.
Tracie Keesee, a 25-year veteran of the Denver Police Department, was named the department’s deputy commissioner of training at a promotions ceremony at One Police Plaza Tuesday morning.
“I’m going to expand upon the great work that’s been happening here,” she said. “We’ll be working with not just the recruits but officers who have a tenure here and community to figure out what kind of training will work best for everybody.”
Keesee's appointment fills a post that has been vacant for more than a year. The department's last deputy commissioner of training, Michael Julian, was promoted in February 2015 to deputy commissioner of personnel.
After serving 25 years in the Denver Police Department, Keesee most recently worked as project director at the National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice — a federal initiative which provided training to law enforcement on bias reduction and procedural fairness — according to her LinkedIn.
Before that, she helped start the Center for Policing Equity, which used research to create strategies to develop closer ties between law enforcement and communities.
NYPD Chief of Department James O’Neill said Keesee’s years of experience will be a great asset to the department.
“You know how important training is to us,” he said. “We’re lucky to have her.”
