Chapel Hill Assistant Chief of Police Credits Education and Experience for His Success
Chapel Hill Assistant Chief of Police Credits Education and Experience for His Success
RTP- University of Mount Olive Alumnus Alonzo Jaynes always dreamed of eventually earning the title of chief of police. With hard work and determination Jaynes is now one step closer to achieving that dream as he was recently promoted to assistant chief of the Chapel Hill Police Department.
Jaynes attributes his tremendous promotion to his 19 years of service with the Durham Police Department and to the University of Mount Olive (UMO) at RTP where he earned his degree.
“At the Durham Police Department, I was promoted to corporal after four years. After this first promotion, I was inspired by Teresa Chambers, our former chief of police,” recalls Jaynes. “I developed a great deal of admiration for her style of leadership and decided that I too wanted to lead a police agency. I researched the position requirements and discovered that most agencies required applicants to at least have a bachelor’s degree. After discussing this with a friend, he told me about the University of Mount Olive RTP location.”
Jaynes soon realized that UMO was the perfect fit for his educational needs and he enrolled in 2003. The flexible classes allowed him to juggle his busy work schedule and course work.
“I was a detective while I was taking classes at UMO. The modular style of programming allowed me to pace myself and maintain my schedule,” he said.
Jaynes graduated from UMO with a degree in business management and organizational development in 2007. He also received numerous advancements at the Durham Police Department including his promotions to sergeant, lieutenant, and eventually captain.
“I believe that UMO gave me the tools necessary to take on and tackle major projects,” said Jaynes. “The classes and professors at UMO provided me with the perfect education for my career needs. Dr. Felts was one of my professors who reinforced and confirmed my experiences and my views on managing people. I still remember Dr. Felts’ important discussions on organizational change and management.”
Jaynes is grateful for his degree from UMO and believes that it aided him in landing the position of assistant chief with the Chapel Hill Police Department. This title involves supervising the managers who oversee the School Resource Officers Program, Community Services, the Crisis Unit, the Training Division, Records, and the Police Reserves.
“I have to say that, without a degree from UMO, I would not have been as marketable for this position. The courses I took, the commitment it took to complete the program, and the overall experience of learning prepared me for promotional assessment centers, job effectiveness, and the courage to think outside of the box to accomplish departmental goals.”
Jaynes resides in Wake County with his wife, Sonjaye, and they have two sons, Alonzo Jaynes Jr. (21) and Trey Jaynes (15). Jaynes is also the spiritual leader at Kingdom Harvest Church in Garner.
The University of Mount Olive is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values. The University, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Research Triangle Park, Washington, Jacksonville, and in Smithfield at Johnston Community College. For more information, visit old.umo.edu.
