After a three-month search, Ken Brown, JD, MPA, PhD, FACHE, executive vice chancellor and chief operations officer for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, has named retired Memphis Police Department Deputy Director Anthony Berryhill chief of police for the UTHSC Memphis campus. He will serve in his new role beginning November 1.
With the MPD since 1984, Berryhill retired in December 2015. While there, he was one of the top officers, working second-in-command to former MPD Director Toney Armstrong, who now serves as director of security for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
A Memphis native, Berryhill will bring more than 31 years’ experience as a police officer and seven years’ experience in the military.
In his role as chief of police at UTHSC, Berryhill will be responsible for providing command and patrol services to approximately 50 buildings on campus, which represents roughly 75 acres. He will also supervise more than 60 police officers, security officers and staff of the UTHSC Campus Police Department, as well as the UTHSC Parking Authority, which is operational 365 days a year and 24 hours a day.
Berryhill will also serve as the UTHSC liaison to the local law enforcement agencies, including the Memphis Police Department, Shelby County Sheriff’s Department, and security personnel for Veteran’s Administration Hospital, Regional One Health System, Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and Methodist University Hospital. Berryhill will play a role with the growth strategy for the Memphis Medical District Collaborative, a nonprofit community development focused on the safety, growth and future of the Memphis Medical District.
“I’m so excited to be here,” said Berryhill during a recent welcoming reception held on campus. “I’m looking forward to this journey. And one thing I’m looking forward to is that we have a lot of good men and women in the UTHSC police department, and I want to make certain the things we are doing well, we are going to do even better, and that is keeping you safe.”