New Ashland's deputy police chief's motto: 'What can I do to make things better'

Norman Miller, The MetroWest Daily News
Updated ·3 min read

ASHLAND — Mike Vinciulla has done a bit of everything during his 19 years as a member of the Ashland Police Department.

And now, the 47-year-old Bellingham native is the department's first deputy police chief.

"I've been involved in so many areas, it kind of prepared me for that role," Vinciulla said. "One of the things that I'm working on is empowering and delegating the other supervisors to take on some of these roles. I think everyone needs to have that feeling of purpose. I've done enough years in patrol, driving around eight hours a day, 40 hours a week — it's great — but you need something. What is an officer's 'something?' How can we excite them? That's what I want to work on."

Mike Vinciulla, a 19-year veteran of the Ashland Police Department, recently became the department's first deputy chief, Aug. 17, 2023.
Mike Vinciulla, a 19-year veteran of the Ashland Police Department, recently became the department's first deputy chief, Aug. 17, 2023.

Police Chief Cara Rossi said that when she started as chief about a year ago, her goal was to redo the department's command structure. At the time, there was only one lieutenant — Rich Briggs, who had served as interim chief before Rossi was hired.

She immediately promoted a second sergeant and promoted Vinciulla to lieutenant. The deputy chief position is his third promotion in a year.

"He has really grown in the year I've been here," Rossi said. "Deputy Chief Vinciulla is definitely my right-hand man. He can run the department in my absence, and I can be assured everything is being run correctly."

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Ashland Deputy Police Chief Mike Vinciulla, Aug. 17, 2023.
Ashland Deputy Police Chief Mike Vinciulla, Aug. 17, 2023.

Having a deputy chief is important, Rossi said. It sets up a clear second-in-command and it adds a nonunion member to the department. The deputy chief is in charge when Rossi is unavailable and helps with both operational and administrative duties.

How Vinciulla went from EMC to a full-time police officer

Vinciulla said he had always been interested in being a police officer — his original goal was to become an officer in Los Angeles. He went out west and took several tests, did well, then returned to Massachusetts to wait to be invited to the academy.

However, as time went by, he took a job at EMC Corp. doing environmental testing, a job he really enjoyed.

"I ended up really liking it," he said. "I was seeing myself in a tech career and when LA reached out and invited me to the academy, I turned it down."

Ashland Deputy Police Chief Mike Vinciulla spent much of his 20s working at computer storage giant EMC Corp. But his childhood dream of becoming a police officer again entered his mind.
Ashland Deputy Police Chief Mike Vinciulla spent much of his 20s working at computer storage giant EMC Corp. But his childhood dream of becoming a police officer again entered his mind.

Vinciulla had several roles with EMC, and was a software engineer when the idea of becoming a police officer again entered his mind. He became an auxiliary police officer in Wayland before becoming a reserve officer in Ashland in 2004. He was hired a few months later and attended the police academy in 2005.

He started in patrol, but his EMC experience eventually translated to police work. In 2006, he became a forensic computer examiner for the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council, a role he also held for the Ashland Police Department. He performs systems work for department computers, as well as for cruiser laptops.

Vinciulla has worked as a patrol officer, a detective, a bicycle officer and motorcycle officer. He has also taught internet safety in Ashland Public Schools, coordinated department training and is a firearms instructor.

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"I've been fortunate to have been involved in a lot of different things," he said.

As deputy chief, Vinciulla said he will have "direct involvement" with all department personnel and will assist more with special event planning. He will also be a liaison between the department and community groups and businesses.

When Ashland police officer Mike Vinciulla was recently named to become the department's first deputy police chief, it was his third promotion in the past year.
When Ashland police officer Mike Vinciulla was recently named to become the department's first deputy police chief, it was his third promotion in the past year.

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As for how he rose through the ranks so quickly in the past year, Vinciulla said it was due to a conscious decision on how he viewed work.

"It was a conscious effort to take action on things that needed to be done," he said. "When you take out the 'what's in it for me,' and make it 'what can I do to make things better here,' it makes a difference."

Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on Twitter @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Ashland Police Department hires Mike Vinciulla as first deputy chief