Ozarks Profile

Chief of police, Springfield Police Department. "The department prides itself in a history of honesty and integrity, and provides professional law enforcement services to its citizens," Rowe said. Rowe became chief of police in September 1993, after a national selection process. "I am proud to be associated with the Springfield Police Department and its fine members, and we look forward to continuing the positive services that have traditionally been supplied by this department," Rowe said. He is affiliated with the Missouri Police Chiefs Association for which he is a regional vice president and member of the board. He is also a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the Missouri Police Officers Association. He serves on the boards of the Missouri Victim Center, the Community Partnership of the Ozarks, Ozarks Fighting Back and is a member of the Downtown Springfield Rotary.

Age: 53.

No. of years in Springfield/area: Has lived here since 1993.

Education: Graduated from high school in Westminster, Colo., a suburb of Denver, and received an undergraduate degree from Metropolitan State College in Denver, where he majored in criminal justice administration and minored in business administration. He received a master's degree in public administration from the University of Colorado at Denver. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy and the Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminar, held by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Early career: Began in law enforcement as a sheriff's deputy in Adams County, Colo., in 1965, and he remained with that department until 1985. He became the chief of police in Northglenn, Colo., and served there for 3 1/2 years. In 1989, he was appointed the chief of police in Cape Coral, Fla. He remained there until coming to Springfield in 1993. "In the law-enforcement field, if you want to accept greater responsibility as a chief of police, it is necessary to change employment, and that accounts for the three positions that I have held as chief of police," Rowe said. He added that he is especially fond of Springfield and has no plans to make any further changes "as I have achieved the goal that I set several years ago by working in a larger professional police department." Before he was in law enforcement, Rowe said he worked in various positions on a part-time basis, including being an apprentice pharmacist and working for the Public Works Department in Westminster, which led to his developing an interest in law enforcement.

Current projects: "The voters in Greene County gave us the opportunity for some additional law-enforcement funding in the law-enforcement sales tax issue last November," Rowe said. The department is working on a variety of projects as a result, including consolidation of the city of Springfield and Greene County jails, a county-wide emergency communications system, the addition of 60 additional police officers for Springfield and some support personnel.

Management philosophy: "My management philosophy is based on the understanding that my position requires that I make the very best use of the resources we have available to provide the highest quality of law-enforcement service to the community," Rowe said. "I take that role very seriously, and we do our level best in incorporating a decision-making philosophy that involves as many people in the police department as we can to make sure there is consensus and agreement on how to best achieve the objectives of proper use of resources. There are always times where difficult decisions need to be made, and in those cases I am never reluctant to assume that responsibility; however, if others can be involved, we try and use a management-team consensus philosophy for making critical decisions within the organization."

Spare-time pursuits: Boating, canoeing and fishing. Rowe also has an interest in automobiles and is involved in "some kind of project most of the time in my garage," he said.

Family data: His 10-year-old son, Kyle, was part of his motivation to move to Springfield. "The good sense of value that people in this community have, plus the safe environment, was a major motivation to bring me to the city of Springfield," Rowe said.

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