Riseling elected vice president of association of police chiefs

Susan Riseling, UW–Madison’s police chief and associate vice chancellor for protective services, has been elected vice president at-large of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

She becomes the first Wisconsin police chief to serve in the leadership of the association, which is the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit membership organization of police executives.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be chosen to help guide an international group dedicated to advancing police services and maintaining the highest professional standards in law enforcement,” says Riseling.

She was elected at the IACP’s 112th annual conference in Miami.

UW–Madison Chancellor John D. Wiley says Riseling’s election demonstrates that her approach to law enforcement is highly regarded both in Madison and around the world.

“Sue is an excellent, innovative leader who has a deep commitment to top-quality policing,” Wiley says. “It’s no surprise to us that her colleagues regard her so highly and have selected her to serve as one of their leaders.”

IACP has more than 19,000 members in more than 100 nations, and has been instrumental in advancing the art and science of police services.

Darrell Bazzell, vice chancellor for administration at UW–Madison, says Riseling has played a major role in emergency management, infrastructure security, controlling access to facilities and collaborating with campus safety officials.

“As security demands have increased in complexity in the years since 9/11, Sue has worked to make sure all of these areas run seamlessly and that our campus community remains safe,” Bazzell says.

Riseling came to UW–Madison as police chief in 1991 after serving as associate director of university police at the State University of New York-Stony Brook. She was the first woman to lead a Big Ten university police force, and in 2003 she was named associate vice chancellor.

In that same year, she was elected to serve a one-year term as president of the Wisconsin Chiefs of Police Association, making her the first woman and first university police chief to head that organization.