Ryan Merola is the Chief of Staff for the New York Police Department. Prior to that, he was Deputy Commissioner & Chief of Staff for NYC Department of Sanitation. He previously served as Chief of Staff in the Information & Technology Bureau for the NYPD and worked in the Counterterrorism Bureau at NYPD as an Intelligence Research Specialist for several years. A 2011 US-Ireland Alliance Scholar, Ryan received a Master's Degree in Violence, Terrorism and Security from Queen's University, Belfast. He chose the course to build upon his experience working in the Counter-Terrorism Bureau of the NYPD. His thesis research examined the effectiveness of urban counter-terrorism programs using the NYPD as a case study. Ryan was interested to learn how policing in Northern Ireland had evolved to deal with civil unrest and the threat of terrorism. He also worked for the Alliance Party in Belfast, doing on-the-ground campaign work. He is particularly interested in the administration and operations of local government and the challenges of coordinating the efforts of multiple agencies to improve citizens' lives. Ryan obtained his undergraduate degree CUNY-Brooklyn College and his JD from Brooklyn Law School in New York City.

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