As the Providence Police Department continues its investigation of Saturday afternoon's Brown University mass shooting that left two dead and nine injured, the Ivy League school's head of campus safety has maintained a low profile.
Rodney Chatman serves as Brown's vice president for public safety and emergency management, a position that makes him the school's executive director of public safety and chief of university police.
His LinkedIn page says he began his career as a police officer in 2005 at the University of Cincinnati, and became a captain in that department in 2012.
In 2016, he departed for the University of Dayton, where he became the executive director of campus safety and police chief. In 2020, he moved west and became the police chief at the University of Utah. His yearlong tenure at that school was marred by controversy after he was accused of wearing a badge and carrying a gun before officially becoming a police officer in the state, which is a crime. Those lack of security cameras that could have helped in identifying the shooter.
Chatman has only briefly addressed the shooting in the days since it occurred, saying that three outdoor sirens on the campus did not activate during the shooting because of how quickly the event took place, according to diversity, equity and inclusion has been a major focus for Brown's campus safety department and Chatman himself.
"As we continue to assess and strengthen campus safety practices amid the critical national debate around policing and justice, we are set to welcome a truly accomplished leader who is ideally positioned to guide this work at Brown," Brown University President Christina Paxson said in a message announcing Chatman's hiring. "Chief Chatman will bring not only an outstanding track record in law enforcement, but also the values, skills and experiences that will enable him to effectively engage our full community in advancing safety on campus in every aspect."
On International Women's Day in March, Chatman, along with the entire Brown Department of Public Safety (DPS), celebrated the department's female officers.
"Today, on International Women’s Day, we proudly celebrate the incredible women of Brown DPS who serve and protect our community with dedication and strength," DPS said in a focus on DEI.
"For around 10 years when the DEI program was initiated at Brown, it seems that diversity was a higher priority than campus safety and now the university and its students are left picking up the pieces of their lethal failure," she said. "Woke does not work when it comes to campus safety! And sadly, two innocent students have lost their lives."
Ella Cook of Alabama and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, an Uzbek national who had been living in Virginia, were killed in Saturday's attack.
Brown officials pointed Fox News Digital to a Monday statement about the tragedy, which includes a list of enhanced security measures, in response to an inquiry about DEI and campus safety.
Chatman did not return a request for comment.