Ashland University graduate promoted to assistant chief for Norwalk Police Department

While Michael Biller came to Ashland University to play sports, he left with a strong desire for a law enforcement career.

“One of the main reasons why I chose AU was because of the football and baseball programs,” said Biller, a 2008 Ashland grad. “I only played football for one year and baseball for three years. I decided to concentrate on my academics and my career in law enforcement during my senior year.”

That decision has paid off for Biller, a criminal justice and sociology double major. He has found a home with the Norwalk Police Department for the past decade.

Last month, Biller was promoted to assistant police chief.

“After I was promoted in 2018 and spent a few years as a sergeant, I then decided to pursue the role I am in now,” Biller said. “We are a very young police department and I believe my work ethic and motivation will inspire the new and young officers.”

Growing up, Biller said he looked up to fictional superheroes, such as Spider-Man, Superman and Batman, and thought to himself, “How can I be like them?”

Thinking the best way to do that was through the military or law enforcement, Biller picked one of them: law enforcement.

“In my late teen years, I decided I wanted to find a career that wouldn’t bore me, and I thought law enforcement was the job for me,” he said. “Being able to help others and to bring justice to the community.”

Working in Norwalk has allowed the 2004 Norwalk High School graduate to do that in his hometown, where he is happy to be raising his four young children with his wife of seven years.

City of Norwalk Mayor David W. Light, a former Norwalk police chief who hired Biller, said Biller “operates from an honest, common-sense platform with a perfect combination of being smart and educated with a genuine love for his family, his fellow officers and his community.”

Ever since Biller was a little kid running around Norwalk, he said the idea of being a police officer always interested him.

“I grew up with a rough childhood and I wanted a better life,” he said.

Going to Ashland helped Biller on his way to a better life.

Biller said the professors in the criminal justice program were very helpful in guiding him toward law enforcement.

“They also provided internships, for example with the Ashland Police Department,” Biller said. “I was able to ride along for several months and learn the day-to-day operation of a police officer. This gave me an insight on how police officers interact with the public and how calls for service are performed.”

Not only does Biller recommend AU for anyone considering a career in law enforcement with its hands-on approach and how easily the university helps students transition into a career after graduation, but he also wants to keep working with Ashland University in his new position.

“We are currently hiring officers and dispatchers and we are willing to work with AU to have students, who are seriously interested in law enforcement, ride along or perhaps start an internship with the police department,” Biller said. “Go Eagles!”