OU Chief of Police Nathaniel Tarver will retire on Sept. 19 after 10 years at the university and 46 years of service.
Tarver, an OU alum, joined OUPD in 2015 after working for the Moore and Oklahoma City police departments.
Tarver started his career with OU as deputy chief of the Health Sciences Center before becoming chief of police for that campus. He was later selected to become chief of all three OU campuses in 2020.
Tarver told OU Daily Tuesday that his work at OU has been more difficult than his municipal law enforcement work because university officers are expected to have knowledge of additional procedures, such as behavioral intervention.
“Many people thought when I took the job as chief of police as a campus law enforcement officer that it was a retirement job,” Tarver said. “I guarantee you that I worked harder at being the chief at OU than I have at any other job that I’ve had.”
Tarver said he has worked to convince people that campus officers are professional law enforcement officers.
“Campus law enforcement is not a lesser law enforcement,” Tarver said.
Tarver said he hopes the department will find a good leader through its nationwide search, but hopes the university will consider existing OUPD employees.
“There is a capable candidate within the police department right now,” Tarver said. “Hopefully he will be given an opportunity to compete.”
Tarver said the nationwide search broadens the pool of applicants who offer a more diverse range of experiences.
“You have candidates from various backgrounds and various areas of the country,” Tarver said. “(These candidates) bring possibly some expertise or some vision that they have from other areas.”
When asked about his retirement plans, Tarver said he will not be working “anymore, at all.” Tarver plans to travel and spend more time with his family.
“It’s been a privilege and an honor to be the chief,” Tarver said. “We’ve set a good foundation, and so I look forward to seeing where that goes.”
This story was edited by Ana Barboza and Natalie Armour. Madisson Cameron and Sophie Hemker copy edited this story.
