The City of Brookings and Meliora Public Safety Consulting (PSC) continue the search for Brookings' next police chief. The search, launched in March, has focused on gathering a qualified pool of candidates to hire a chief who will be the best fit for Brookings and who will continue the momentum of enhancing and progressing excellent public safety programs and presence in the community.

To date, the search has included city, community, and police department focus groups and an extensive recruitment campaign that shaped a comprehensive candidate profile representing Brookings' needs, vision, and mission. The candidate recruitment process has identified and vetted a qualified pool of individuals based on information gathered from the community and police forums which took place in April.

The search has been narrowed to nine semi-finalist candidates through interviews and analysis conducted by Meliora PSC and the City. Semi-finalists have been invited to participate in three interview panels set to take place on June 27th. The interview panels will be conducted by individuals representing diverse experiences, backgrounds, perspectives, and credentials. They include members of law enforcement, community members, and the city leadership team.

From the semi-final panels, a final selection of candidates will be chosen. Those candidates will meet with an industrial psychologist from Meliora PSC to further assess their fit with the department, City and community. The candidates will attend a Police Department Forum, Community Forum, and final interviews, scheduled for July 11th and 12th.

Community members are invited to attend the Community Forum with Police Chief Finalists as part of the final hiring process. The open-to-the-public event that Meliora PSC will facilitate will occur July 11th, 5:30 p.m. in the 3rd-floor chambers of the City and County Government Center. The event will also be broadcast live on local cable Channel 9 and online at: https://cityofbrookings-sd.gov/livetv

The event will provide each final candidate with 40 minutes. During that time, they will provide information about their qualifications and background as well as respond to questions submitted by residents. Candidates will remain during their respective break following their forum to speak to and be assessed by community members.

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