John Mark Harrington (born 1956) is the Commissioner of the

Minnesota Department of Public Safety The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) is a department of the State of Minnesota in the United States. DPS is an enforcement, licensing and services agency that develops and operates programs in the areas of law enforcement, traffic safe ...

for the

U.S. State In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, appointed by

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Tim Walz Timothy James Walz ( ; born April 6, 1964) is an American politician and retired educator. A member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), he has served as the 41st governor of Minnesota since 2019. Born in West Point, Nebraska, Walz ...

. He has served since January 2019. Harrington previously served as

Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

of the

Saint Paul Police Department The Saint Paul Police Department (SPPD) is the main law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It was established in 1854, making it the oldest police organization in the state. The SPPD is t ...

(2004-2010) and

of the Metro Transit Police (2012-2019) in

Minneapolis–Saint Paul Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi, Minnesota and St. Croix rivers in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is commonly known as the Twin Cities ...

. He is a former member of the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any U.S. state legislature. Floor sessions are hel ...

who represented District 67, which includes portions of the city of

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

in Ramsey County. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, he is a teacher and manager at

Metropolitan State University Metropolitan State University (Metro State) is a public university in the Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota metropolitan area. It is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

Biography

Early life, education and career

John Harrington grew up in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

until he finished high school at

De La Salle Institute English: Sign of Faith , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic( De La Salle Brothers} , patron = , established = , founder = Brother Adjutor of Mary, FSC , status = Open ...

. He received his Bachelor of Arts from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of Eng ...

, where he majored in Far East religion and minored in

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

. He earned a master's degree in education from the

University of St. Thomas St. Thomas University or University of St. Thomas may refer to: *Saint Thomas Aquinas University, Colombia *Saint Thomas Aquinas University of the North, Tucumán province, Argentina *St. Thomas University (Canada), Fredericton, New Brunswick *St. ...

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...

. He also graduated from the

FBI National Academy The FBI National Academy is a program of the FBI Academy for active U.S. law enforcement personnel and also for international law enforcement personnel who seek to enhance their credentials in their field and to raise law enforcement standards, kno ...

, the National Executive Institute, and the Harvard Senior Management Institute. Harrington began his police career in 1977 at the

, working his way up the chain of command from patrol officer. He was selected as chief of police in 2004 and served in that role until 2010. As chief of police, he addressed some of Saint Paul’s most difficult problems, developing innovative programs that greatly reduced domestic violence and gang involvement. He also increased the diversity of the police department by 40% and worked with the private sector to increase police resources.

State Senate

Harrington was elected to the Senate in 2010, running after Senator

Mee Moua Mee Moua ( RPA: Qaav Ruom, born June 30, 1969 in Xieng Khouang, Laos), is an American politician, and is the former president and executive director of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice -AAJC (Advancing Justice-AAJC) She served as the vic ...

decided not to seek reelection. Before winning the November general election, he won the August primary against eight challengers. He was a member of the Education, the Judiciary and Public Safety, and the Local Government and Elections committees. In addition, he was appointed to the Senate Ethics Committee and Redistricting Committee. His special legislative concerns included public safety, education, and employment. Harrington vacated his seat weeks before the November 2012 election and was named chief of the Metro Transit Police.

St. Paul Police Department

Harrington was a member of the

from 1977 to 2010, serving as its

chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

from 2004 to 2010.

Metro Transit

In September 2012, Harrington was sworn in as chief of Metro Transit Police in Minneapolis–Saint Paul.

Ujamaa Place

After retiring from the Saint Paul Police Department, Harrington became the President and CEO of

Ujamaa Place Ujamaa Place is a non-profit organization, it was launched in 2009 to fill a gap in social welfare programming and services for African-American men in the age group of between 17 and 28 years old in St. Paul, Minnesota. Ujamaa Place took over the ...

, a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

that serves African American men who are economically disadvantaged and have experienced repeated cycles of failure. His name recognition helped the organization raise over $1 million. Harrington stepped down as CEO in 2012 but continues to serve as chair of the organization's board.

References

External links

Minnesota Department of Public Safety - Office of the Commissioner

Senator John Harrington Web PageProject Vote Smart - Senator John Harrington ProfileJohn Harrington Facebook Campaign Site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrington, John 1956 births Living people People from Ramsey County, Minnesota Politicians from Saint Paul, Minnesota Dartmouth College alumni University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) alumni State cabinet secretaries of Minnesota Democratic Party Minnesota state senators American police chiefs 21st-century American politicians