The UW–Madison Police Department(UWPD), under the leadership of Associate Vice Chancellor and Chief of Police Kristen Roman, is a full-service law enforcement agency serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.
UWPD prides itself on its community policing philosophy. They are leaders in innovative problem-oriented policing. They value diversity and respect the dignity of all people. They uphold individual and constitutional rights and promote campus community wellbeing through collaborative approaches to ensuring safety.
Serving in partnership to support and facilitate the educational mission of UW-Madison, UWPD seeks to cultivate a campus environment where students, faculty, and staff are safe.
As guardians on the UW-Madison campus, UWPD holds itself to high expectations — operating in a fair, unbiased manner which respects the rights and dignity of all individuals. They strive to always be better and do better.
UWPD lives and breathes its mission of Reaching HIGHER. It’s not just a phrase about moving forward and reaching for greatness — it’s the way UWPD polices and protects our community.
We invite you to consider a gift to support the greatest needs of the UW-Madison Police Department via the Reaching HIGHER Fund.
Additionally, gifts are especially helpful for two of the department’s major endeavors:
- K-9 Fund
The UWPD K9 Unit is comprised of four K9 teams — each has a specialty and can be seen at various times and events around the campus area. Three of the K9s are explosive detection K9s and are also trained in human tracking.
Most commonly, the explosive detection K9s can be seen providing security at large events on campus, like at Camp Randall Stadium or the Kohl Center. Many times, their noses are put to work hours prior to large events. They also respond to suspicious item calls, bomb threats, and can provide a variety of other services.
Our other K9 team specializes in narcotics detection, and are most frequently utilized on traffic stops.
All of the K9s are certified annually by the North American Police Work Dog Association and live with their handlers. The K9s love to interact with the community and play an important role in making the campus and surrounding community safe. Presentations involving the K9 unit can be set up by contacting one of the K9 handlers.
- Mounted Patrol Fund
Gifts to this fund will support the UWPD Mounted Police Unit, re-established in 2022. The UWPD Mounted Unit provides countless benefits to the UW-Madison community and beyond. Community relations, crowd control, and visibility, are just a few of the many ways horses contribute to a safe and secure community. Anyone who has attended a Badger Football home game at Camp Randall Stadium has likely noticed mounted patrols. The Mounted Unit is responsible for carrying out a diverse array of duties before, during, and after the game – from escorts for ambulances, buses and VIP vehicles, to assistance with arrests and ejections from the stadium, crowd control, providing general information and directions to fans, and simply being a presence around the stadium.
Horses are useful in crowd situations beyond football game days – in large crowds, the mounted officer can see and be seen unlike any other officer. Horses also offer a unique ability to move through a crowd when a squad car cannot and are effective in moving a person or a group. Horses have the ability to patrol areas of campus which are generally inaccessible by a squad car, like the Arboretum and Picnic Point.
The training of a police horse is a lengthy, ongoing, and continuous process. Horses are thought to be the most perceptive mammal that exists, and are second only to elephants for their memory. A horse’s strongest instinct is to flee from contentious situations. Police horses are trained to work through this instinct by building a trusting relationship with their rider. Horses need to work well with other horses and tolerate a wide range of obstacles – gun shots, marching bands, lights and sirens, fireworks, baby strollers, small children, and more.
