COLUMBUS, Ohio — Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther announced on Monday he has appointed Rena Shak to lead the newly created Office of Violence Prevention which will work to reduce violent crime throughout the city.
“I am honored to have been entrusted by Mayor Ginther to lead the Office of Violence Prevention,” Shak said. “I am committed to working collaboratively with city departments, community partners and residents to reduce violence and enhance safety initiatives in Columbus.”
Ginther said the city’s police department focuses on prevention, intervention and enforcement and this newly created office will be a great addition to their efforts.
“Hopefully getting people before they enter the system, trying to create a situation where an event doesn't ever necessarily happen in the first place so the officers don't have to come out,” Shak said.
Shak has been in-house counsel and assistant policy director for the mayor’s office since June 2022 and worked on efforts to strengthen the city’s gun laws and other public safety-related issues including juvenile justice.
Her prior experience includes a decade of working in the criminal justice system, most notably as a Franklin County public defender. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from The Ohio State University and a JD from Capital University Law School.
“Rena’s depth of experience in public service will enable her to oversee all of the prevention and intervention programs sponsored by the city through multiple departments,” said Mayor Ginther. “I’m confident in her ability to stand up the city’s first-ever Office of Violence Prevention – which also happens to be the first of its kind in the state.”
Shak will work out of Ginther’s office and focus on city-run programs and non-profits that receive funding from the city to see what is and isn’t working to prevent violence in Columbus.
Ginther says $1.5 million from the approved city budget was set aside to fund the Office of Violence Prevention.