Philly Police appoint acting DEI director weeks after abruptly firing predecessor

The Philadelphia Police Department has appointed an acting director of diversity, equity and inclusion, just weeks after the department’s first DEI officer was abruptly fired the morning of new Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel’s swearing-in.

Tamyra Ramsey, who is originally from West Philadelphia, will serve as acting director while the department searches for a permanent replacement, the police department said in a statement.

Ramsey could not immediately be reached for comment.

Ramsey, 25, will make the equivalent of a $130,000 annual salary while she holds the job, and she will report to Deputy Commissioner Fran Healy, police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp said in an email Tuesday night.

There are four employees in that office who will now report directly to Ramsey as acting director, Gripp said.

The department is in the process of creating a job posting for a replacement, and will try to fill the role as soon as possible, Gripp said.

”I am confident that Ms. Ramsey’s expertise and passion will be instrumental in advancing PPD’s DEI goals and fostering a more inclusive and equitable department,” Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel said in a statement. “We look forward to the positive impact she will make throughout her tenure.”

Ramsey was previously a senior departmental human resources associate with the police department, earning a base salary of $76,091, according to the city’s public database. Starting last April, she was a senior DEI manager at the department, according to her LinkedIn page.

Ramsey received a bachelor’s of science degree in biology from George Mason University, police said. While at George Mason University, she helped launch an initiative to help foster relationships between students, housing and residence life, and the George Mason University Police Department, according to the announcement from the police department.

She received a certificate in diversity, equity, and inclusion from the Wisconsin School of Business and is pursuing a master’s degree in urban health at Drexel University. She has also completed instructor development training for the Philadelphia police department.

Ramsey also worked as a DEI consultant for Uplifting Impact, a Wisconsin-based consulting firm focused on DEI, police said. She worked at Uplifting Impact from March 2021 to April 2023, when she started at the Philadelphia police department, according to her LinkedIn information.

Ramsey’s predecessor Leslie Marant was fired by then-Acting Police Commissioner John Stanford just hours before Bethel was sworn in to his post by Mayor Cherelle Parker. At a meeting that morning, Stanford said Bethel would be restructuring the department and would no longer need Marant’s services, a source with knowledge of the dismissal previously said.

Marant, former chief counsel to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, was hired in April 2022 as part of former Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw’s administration.

Staff writer Robert Moran contributed to this article.