Former city police chief starts at UK

NEWS BRIEF

Anthany Beatty, the former chief of the Lexington Police Department, began working at UK on Monday as the assistant vice president for public safety.

UK announced in August that Beatty would join the administration and oversee the UK Police Department, Parking and Transportation, Environmental Health, and Safety and Emergency Management.

The position is not entirely new. Last year Ken Clevidence was responsible for those departments and for university property as the assistant vice president of auxiliary affairs. After he retired in June, the university modified the position so that it had a greater emphasis on public safety.

One of the first tasks that Beatty will have to tackle is the ongoing search for a UK police chief. In August, Beatty said finding a new chief would be his first order of business.

The last permanent chief resigned in November 2004. Maj. Joe Monroe is serving as an interim police chief until UK makes a final choice.

While the decision needs to be made quickly, Beatty wants the search to be done well to ensure the right chief is in place, said UK spokesman Jay Blanton. Beatty is reviewing resumes and also considering people who are currently within the department, Blanton said.