Influential Woman · Law Enforcement

Jennifer Roberts

Community Outreach Division for the Cedar Rapids Police Department, Cedar Rapids Police Department

Cedar Rapids, IA

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Criminal Justice degree Cert Certified Polygraph Examiner Cert Crisis Negotiator (16 years) Member Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Member Iowa Association of Police Officers Member Iowa Association of Women's Police Member National Polygraph Association

Her Story

About Jennifer

I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do in college. I initially studied athletic training because I enjoyed being active and working with athletes, but I quickly realized it wasn't the path for me. I took a sociology class and really liked learning about people's backgrounds, how that affects their decisions and their life, and how that affects crime and the decisions people make. I changed my major to criminal justice, and when applications opened for the Cedar Rapids Police Department, I took a chance and applied. At the time, I was married and had two young children, really young, so I wasn't really sure about my path, but I got hired and have loved my job ever since. I've moved around within the department over the years. I did 10 years on patrol before moving into investigations, and I moved into the schools for a short period of time as a school resource officer. I worked primarily sex crimes and some crimes against persons cases for 5 years, and I was very passionate about that work. When I got to a certain mark as an officer, I decided it was a good time to take the promotional test. I got promoted, and when you get promoted, they don't allow you to stay on as an investigator, so I moved back to the street as a patrol commander. I did that for a few more years and then moved back into investigations again, where I oversaw our property crimes division. I also became a polygraph examiner, which is a part that I love because I still get to do interview and interrogation-type things. In 2023, I took over our community outreach division, where I handle all public education and any community events. I get to do a lot more interaction with the public, and I really enjoy that.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Jennifer

01What do you attribute your success to?

I work hard, and I'm very motivated to do my job well. It comes from internal pride in what I do, and I know that I represent a much bigger thing than just myself. I make sure that I am representing our department and our city in a good light, but it's more than that. It's really being proud of what I do and being proud of who I am.

02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?

I think a lot of times we think that this profession requires us to be big and strong, and it's a male-dominated profession. But women have so much to give as far as the way we look at things. We're detail-oriented, we just look at things different, and we come from a position of caring. If you look at young ladies that are strong and confident, that's the kind of people we want, and we want people that can work in different areas. I was a crisis negotiator for 16 years, and it's just a strong feeling of wanting to help people, but we can use our caring side and our confidence side to do good in this field. People write it off quickly, saying, you know, oh, you're just a woman, and you can't do this job, but we have so much to offer.

03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?

The biggest challenges are recruiting, definitely trying to get our numbers and good people to apply. It kind of ebbs and flows with this position and the way the world is and views on policing. We're trying to get good people to see the importance of this job and getting them to apply and realize that it's an amazing career, and there's a lot of different opportunities within this career. The biggest challenge is just finding those good people that we want to have working with us.

04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?

Most importantly, I have a strong faith, and so when I come into work, my most important aspect is I want to treat people with respect. I want to make sure that I'm finding a place of empathy and working with people and just showing them love. I understand that people are in all different areas of their life, and they need respect. I think that's always the first and foremost of my job.

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