Alum pioneers community, human-centered policing

On January 2, Anthony Campbell ’95 B.A., ’09 M.Div. resigned as chief of the Yale Police Department (YPD) to begin his tenure as chief of the Harvard University Police.

“It wasn’t an easy decision,” he said. “Yale and New Haven are my home. But this opportunity will help enhance my skillset and foster new leadership.” 

Before YPD, Campbell worked for 21 years at the New Haven Police Department (NHPD), serving as chief from 2016 to 2019. His unique leadership skills have been honed by personal challenges combined with deep faith. 

“I was born in Harlem to teenage parents,” Campbell said. “It was the 1970s in the middle of a heroin epidemic.”

Campbell recalls early memories at the train station, watching people nod out with needles in their arms. Things would get worse a few years later with the devastating spread of crack cocaine. At that point, Campbell’s mother was a corrections officer at Rikers Island while his father sold drugs. 

“My father didn’t do drugs but was often arrested for selling,” he said. “When he was held at Rikers, my mother watched over him. She didn’t approve of his work but loved him. So did I. He always encouraged me. He said he’d kill me if he saw me in the streets. He believed I had a bright future.” 

Additionally, Campbell struggled with health issues as a child, suffering from asthma that often left him hospitalized. This is where he was exposed to the Jesuits who, he says, “Truly embody the teachings of Christ.”

“They visited me in the hospital and helped educate young men from my community,” he said. “They guided me to Fordham Preparatory School, where I graduated valedictorian and was accepted to Yale.”

Campbell was a serious student who majored in religious studies. He thought he’d become a priest until he attended a local Bible study and met the woman who would later become his wife.

“In my sophomore year, God introduced me to this gorgeous green-eyed Jamaican woman named Stephanie,” he said. “We started dating my senior year.”

The two would eventually get married and have three beautiful children. There were many trials, however, on their journey. 

“Her support has been everything to me—right from the beginning,” said Campbell. “I had just graduated when one of the greatest challenges of my life occurred. A family member called me in New Haven to say there was a huge emergency.”

Tragedy and destiny

Campbell rushed to his Harlem home and found, as he says, “the worst situation possible.” After some marital difficulties between his parents, his mother left. Devastated, his father took his mother’s service gun and shot himself once in the chest and once in the head.

“I always expected him to die a violent death from dealing drugs,” Campbell said. “Never in a million years did I imagine he’d commit suicide.”

When Campbell arrived at the apartment, the police would not let him in.

“I knocked on the door,” he said. “A sergeant came out and told me it’s a crime scene. He said he was sorry for my loss and disappeared back into the apartment.”

Campbell stood outside the door as the police cleaned his father’s body. He could hear them joking about the Mike Tyson fight from the previous night.

“It was awful,” he said. “I knew that if I was ever in a position of authority, I’d make sure everyone comported themselves in ways that honor every human being.”

After his father’s burial, Campbell returned to New Haven. Shortly thereafter, he saw an ad on a bus with a picture of an African American female. Beneath her was a caption that read: “Police others as you would have others police you.”

Campbell took this as a sign. He always wanted to serve and considered prison chaplaincy, but his mom suggested he prevent people from incarceration in the first place. 

“At that moment everything sort of came together, and I felt called to be a police officer—one who engages the community and lifts people up,” he said.

Campbell started at the police academy in 1998 before beginning his career as an officer at NHPD. His supervisor was K.D. Codish, New Haven’s first female, openly gay civilian academy director. She recalled how Campbell immediately stood out among his classmates.

“Two students are chosen as leaders for each class, and Anthony was one of them,” she said. “He was clearly smart and had a presence. People were naturally drawn to him.”

Campbell credits Codish for playing a pivotal role in his journey.

“K.D. was my mentor,” he said. “She’s an extraordinary woman who has become family. Her influence on my life cannot be overstated.”

Codish’s curriculum helped pioneer community policing. As NHPD emphasized more civic engagement, many academy students struggled to comprehend the new philosophy. For instance, a number of lessons included acting out various scenarios, practicing greater verbal communication. Campbell understood immediately.

“Community policing requires the knowledge that our uniform may represent fear and persecution, so you must ensure that people see your humanity,” he said. “An officer doesn’t just determine probable cause for arrest. If there’s a domestic situation, look in the fridge and see if there’s food. Help people get jobs. Communicate and seek to engage. These things all feed into public safety.”

Campbell shared devastating stories from his first years on the job, including an injury that would upend his life. In 2006, a young man in a gang initiation purposely hit Campbell with his car, leaving him badly injured for two years.

“The doctors said I may never be a police officer again,” he said. “But this community supported me in ways I could not imagine. They helped me to heal.”

Although his injuries created enormous difficulties, Campbell wrote a letter to the judge, requesting clemency on behalf of the perpetrator. 

“The other police officers did not support my request,” Campbell said. “But the man was facing 65 years. His daughter would grow up without him. I wanted him to return to his family and community.”

Student and teacher at YDS 

While still healing, Campbell applied to Yale Divinity School and received a scholarship with a profound history: In 1872, an African American launderer in New Haven named Mary Goodman left $5,000 to YDS to be used specifically for scholarships for African American men. It’s the equivalent of roughly $150,000 today. 

“I was able to attend YDS thanks to this woman,” Campbell said. “She was incredible and made such an impact. I visited her gravesite to say thank you.”

At YDS, Campbell was touched by a lesson in a class on death and dying.

“The professor worked as a chaplain in the ER, so I asked how she separated such intense work from the rest of her life. She compared it to fly fishing and said, ‘You wear high boots, so the water can’t penetrate. At day’s end, you take the boots off and leave it all behind.’ That’s stayed with me.”

His studies at YDS helped enhance Campbell’s leadership abilities, and in 2016, he became chief of NHPD. He instilled important changes, encouraging diversity and prioritizing mental health. He let his officers know that on Thursday afternoons, he was with his therapist. 

“Officers need self-care—whether a therapist, chaplain, or peer support— because what we endure isn’t natural. This is why police officers have such high rates of alcoholism, divorce, and substance abuse.”

Campbell’s progressive leadership led the Dean of YDS, Greg Sterling, to ask Campbell to return and teach classes about community service and civic engagement. 

“Some of our students understandably have a high degree of suspicion of anyone in a police uniform, and I understand that and I’m sympathetic,” Sterling said. “But I also wanted them to realize that some people in uniform have a moral compass and care deeply about people and the community—those who are very concerned about social and racial justice.”

Sterling hoped Campbell would help build trust and respect for people in positions of authority. He is frank about the racial divide.

“If see a policeman, I see someone who can help me, but if I were a Black male, I doubt I’d have the same response,” he said. “Not all police deserve respect, but Campbell does. He was also a great professor and role model.”

After three years as chief, Campbell was invited to work for the Yale Police Department in 2019.

“I was at NHPD for 21 years, so it was time for me to try something new,” he said. 

While the issues at Yale are different than New Haven, they are still challenging, including the levels of stress many students put on themselves.

“There are a lot of students who self-harm,” he said. “We emphasize mental health throughout the university. Again, it’s all about community engagement and empowerment.”

Campbell served at YPD during a time of great upheaval, including the Covid epidemic and demonstrations for greater equity, leading to an important study on Yale and slavery released in 2024. During this time, Sterling reached out to Campbell again. 

“The two of us came together to present the Yale and Slavery findings to various groups,” said Sterling. “Together we symbolized something greater than ourselves, and it solidified our friendship. He was always there if I needed anything. I will miss him a lot.”

A crimson horizon

While this article was being written, news broke that Campbell took the position at Harvard. When the prospect arose, Campbell realized it was an opportunity to step out of his comfort zone.

“New Haven is where I learned to be a man,” he said. “It’s where I met my wife and raised my kids.”

Regardless, Campbell felt that the challenge was an important part of his professional and personal growth.

“Wherever Anthony goes in life, he’ll create greater inclusivity, kindness, and love,” said Codish. “That’s what he gives to people—the humanity that often gets lost in police work.” 

Campbell doesn’t have connections at Cambridge and Harvard, so he plans to introduce himself to the community in as many ways as possible. Additionally, Harvard’s campus is much bigger, spread out between Cambridge and Boston, and requires a different type of focus. 

“There are going to be challenges,” he said. “Boston has such a rich and complex history. But I look forward to it and seek to make everyone here proud. It’s an honor and a privilege, and I’ll do my best.” 

Now at Harvard, Campbell is meeting the new challenges with the grace and integrity that have come to define his life. He knows it will take a while to settle in, but he’s committed to changing society’s understanding of policing.

“No matter who you are or where you come from, when you think of the police, you should think of people whose first priority is extending themselves as servants and friends to the entire community,” he said. “Real safety comes when we all serve and care for our neighbors.”

“Our shared humanity reaches far beyond what position we hold or what uniform we wear. We must never forget: Police others as you would have others police you. At the end of the day, we all rise—or fall—together.”

Lauren Yanks ’19 M.Div. is a writer and professor and Founder of the Blue Butterfly Foundation www.bluebutterflyfoundation.org, a nonprofit organization that rescues and educates women and children who have been trafficked and enslaved.