Chris is a career police officer with over twenty-five years of experience in law enforcement and thirty-plus years as a first responder. Currently, the Chief of Police for the Town of Cheswold, Delaware, he became passionate about mental health and well-being, particularly within the law enforcement community, and has dedicated his time advocating for the mental health of officers and providing support and resources to those in need.
He holds an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Del-Tech and a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Behavioral Sciences with a certificate in emotional intelligence and leadership and is currently attending Wilmington University to complete his Master's in Administration of Justice in 2026.
A strong advocate for open dialogue about mental health, he believes in the importance of breaking the stigma surrounding seeking help and bringing those issues to the forefront with his podcast, the DeepBlu Project, and his book, Silence Behind the Blue Wall: Surviving the Mental Health Stigma in Police Culture, and his new novel City of Shadows : The Queen of Spades.
Currently he serves as the 1st Vice-President of the FBI-LEEDA Executive Board, is the Former Chair of the IACP Smaller Department Section, Vice President of the FBI National Command Course Association, a founding board member of the Small & Rural Law Enforcement Executives Association, board member of the National Law Enforcement Officer Hall of Fame, served on the advisory council of the Rural Justice Collaborative, is a consultant/advisor with Lighthouse Health & Wellness, an active member of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA), the Delaware Association of Chiefs of Police and serves on other boards and committees for the State of Delaware.
Dedicated to the art of learning and networking with leaders across the nation. He has a passion for advancing the profession of law enforcement leadership, promoting networking, enhancing public safety, and advocating for law enforcement and first responder health and mental wellness.
Chris and his wife, Renee, reside in Delaware and have three children and one grandchild.
Links:
Linked-In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chief-christopher-workman/
Podcast - Guest
Trauma Behind the Badge
Chief Chris Workman - Hardest-working Chief
Chris talks to the Trauma Behind the Badge gang about his history as a first responder, trauma, battling cancer, and what's coming up for him as he plans the Beyond the Badge Health & Wellness Summit.
Leadership 30 (Australia)
♟️ Are you playing chess, or checkers?
The core message? Culture doesn't live on paper.
In this 40-minute deep dive, Chris challenges the "checking the box" mentality and explores what it actually takes to play the long game. We covered some heavy hitters that every leader should keep on their desk:
🔹 Compliance is not culture. Activity is not progress. Completion is not transformation.
🔹 Watch what you tolerate. People don’t just listen to what you say; they watch what you allow.
🔹 The true measure of leadership. It’s not about how indispensable you are, but how prepared others become because of you.
In this episode of "tell this story" , Chris joins host, Doug White to talk about His journey in creating the DeepBlu Project.
Insights from his book on mental health stigma in police culture. The concept of "Officer Wellness from the Top Down." Advice for officers facing mental health challenges.
This conversation offers valuable perspectives on resilience, leadership, and personal growth within law enforcement.
Listen to the full episode at midnight on December 17th on all platforms and our YouTube channel. All the links can be found here:
H.O.P.E. Beyond the Badge Ep #92
Police Chief Christopher Workman began his career in the fire service before transitioning into policing. He has a combined total of over 3 decades working in first response, he is an author, public speaker, founder of the Deep Blu Project, and podcast host. Chief Workman shares openly about how the job unwittingly influenced his personality, his personal life, his professional life, and every relationship he had. He talks about the difficult moments that allowed him to gain insight into himself, and how he leaned into those moments to promote personal change, and how he models that change within his department from the Chiefs office. As we all know, change starts at the top.
Breaking the Silence: Confronting Mental Health Stigma-Featuring Chief Chris Workman
Join me in this authentic conversation with a Police Chief who has opened up about the struggles he has had. Chief Chris Workman is author of the book, "Silence Behind the Blue Wall - Surviving the Mental Health Stigma in Police Culture". *****This conversation will resonate with all first responders.
This was a great opportunity to speak with Scott Medlin on his podcast and discuss the stigma around mental health in police culture and some ways we can break the stigma and help our fellow officers thrive in today's policing world.
The Power of One: Mental Health in Law Enforcement #0701
Chris Workman of the Cheswold Police Department in Delaware and host/founder of the DeepBlu Project speaks with host Melany Nelson about law enforcement and the rising suicide rate among police officers and first responders.
Watch this episode of The Power of One to learn how everyone needs to care for their mental health. It's ok to not be ok, It's just not OK to Stay That Way!!!