Northeast Ohio’s Sarah Shendy becomes Ohio’s first Egyptian-Muslim female police sergeant

CLEVELAND — For more than 15 years, Northeast Ohio’s Sarah Shendy has dedicated her life to law enforcement, sharing her success story in an effort to inspire young people to pursue a career in community service as police officers.

On May 24, Shendy achieved yet another milestone, being sworn in with the Case Western Reserve University police department and becoming Ohio’s first Egyptian-Muslim female police sergeant.

Shendy told News 5 it’s an honor to serve and protect the more than 12,000 students and 3,600 staff members on campus.

“This department has phenomenal culture, and it really values diversity, leadership and the advancement of women of law enforcement,” Shendy said. “Being in uniform is absolutely the best job on the planet and also the most fulfilling. We get the chance, the opportunity and the privilege to be part of people’s story.”

News 5 has followed the inspiring career of Sergeant Sarah Shendy for more than 3 years.

Chief Paul Owens with the Case Western Reserve University Division of Public Safety told News 5 he believes Sergeant Shendy will be a big boost to his police department and the entire campus.

“We’re happy that she has chosen us to be a leader in our department,” Owens said. “She talked about leadership and the importance of her being able to mentor, not just our officers, but the young people, the younger generation, to show them that they too can do what she is doing.”

Shendy also served with Copley Township police and was appointed by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine as the first director of the state’s Office of Law Enforcement and Recruitment. Shedy said campus safety will be one of her primary messages to students.

“We are very big on connecting with the students, the visitors and the faculty here, but not just with driving through, but we are very intentional about foot patrols,” Shendy said. “We have students here from 102 different countries, and things here may be different for them. We always tell students, walk in numbers, not looking at your phone when you’re walking down a street, keep your ear pods out of your ears until you reach a safe location.”

Shendy credits her parents for her success and said she’ll be sharing her message of diversity, determination and self-belief with young people on campus.

“I want people that look like me, that speak my language, that believe in the religion that I follow to look at me and say, ‘If she did it, I can do it,’” Shendy said. “I want to make sure that my immigrant parents know that all the sacrifices that they made were absolutely worth it.”