When Michael Kent immigrated to the United States from Egypt at age 12, he experienced a culture shock similar to what many Irvine teenagers do when they first arrive from abroad.
Kent said everything was different, from how people talked and dressed to food and architecture. At school, he had to get used to moving from one classroom to another for different classes. (In Egypt, teachers came to his classroom.)
But his teachers at Rancho San Joaquin Middle School and Woodbridge High School made sure Kent adjusted to the new environment and felt at home in a new country.
“I can’t think of a single teacher that I had in eighth grade and all through high school that didn’t care,” Kent said. “Every teacher I had, you could tell that they cared for all of their students. They were passionate, genuine and dedicated to their students. They wanted all students to succeed.”
Kent’s childhood dream was to become a police officer. It was an idea that grew on him watching American movies in Egypt.
“You look at some of my childhood pictures, and I’m playing with police cars and wearing police shirts,” he said.
Kent achieved that dream in a big way.
In October 2021, he became the first Irvine Police Chief to grow up in Irvine, attend IUSD schools and rise through the ranks from police explorer to chief. As a result, Kent has a special connection to IUSD schools, giving him a unique and invaluable perspective of student experiences in Irvine.
His life is an epitome of an American success story. Or an Irvine and IUSD success story, for that matter.
Born to an Egyptian father and an Iranian mother, Kent embodies Irvine’s diversity. More than a third of the city’s residents were born outside the U.S., and more than 40 percent speak non-English language at home.
Kent’s parents immigrated to the U.S. because they wanted their children to get a better education and have a broader range of career opportunities.
IUSD offered precisely what they were looking for, nurturing Kent’s passion and preparing him for the future.
Life-changing moment
In school, Kent learned to play the cello and ran cross-country. He enjoyed studying math and history.
He remembers Doug Peters, a physical education teacher at Woodbridge, explaining the importance of a nutritional diet at a time when eating healthy wasn’t as big as it is today.
“I remember how passionate he was in delivering those messages to us,” Kent said.
When he was a freshman, he was pulled over by an Irvine police officer for riding a bike while listening to music with headphones.
“I was in a new country, and now you see this big officer with leather boots stepping off a motorcycle,” Kent recalled. “I was absolutely terrified. I was like, ‘Oh my god, I’m going to jail.’
Seeing how scared and shaken Kent was, the officer, Dick Worcester, kindly told him why he wasn’t supposed to be wearing headphones and how dangerous it was. Kent said he was impressed by how professionally the officer handled the incident.
“That interaction completely changed my perspective,” he said.
He still received a ticket and volunteered at the Boys & Girls Club instead of paying the fine. There, he saw a flier about the Irvine police Explorers program, which gives teenagers a chance to experience some aspects of a career in law enforcement.
Kent joined the program, where he was impressed by the confidence his mentors exuded. Worcester turned out to be one of them. Worcester is now retired and lives in Northern California, but they still keep in touch, Kent says.
“I was a pretty shy kid trying to fit in the community that I wasn’t used to, but I knew this was going to be my home, and I had to come out of my shell,” he said. “The Explorer program did that because you interact with the community as part of the police department. To me, that really helped build my confidence. The more I did that, the more I realized how much I enjoyed helping people.
Senior Portrait, Woodbridge High School
On the job as an Irvine Explorer
Dancing with Atria residents
Strong partnership
After graduating from Cal State Fullerton, Kent applied to work for the Irvine Police Department, where he became a sworn officer in 2002. He worked as a patrol officer, detective, sergeant, SWAT lieutenant, commander and assistant chief.
Along the way, he received numerous awards, including a medal of courage and lifesaving award, which he got after resuscitating an unconscious man.
In 2016, the International Association of Chiefs of Police named him to its inaugural “40 Under 40” list, which honors 40 law enforcement professionals younger than 40 years old who demonstrate leadership and commitment to their job.
He took over as police chief after his predecessor Mike Hamel retired.
Since the Irvine Police Department was formed in 1975, its mission has been to work “In partnership with the community.”
“We were practicing community policing before community policing was even a thing,” Kent says. “I constantly think about, ‘What can we do to improve that relationship with the community?’ because we have a great relationship with the community.”
One of the department’s key partners, Kent says, is IUSD.
“You think about all these families that sacrificed so much and gave up so much to immigrate not just to the United States but to Irvine,” Kent said. “Irvine is known for two things — public safety and education. Education is attributed to the amazing school district that we have in IUSD and obviously colleges, but IUSD is the foundation, and that’s why so many families have sacrificed so much to bring their kids here.”
An example of its commitment to safety and education, Irvine is the only city in Orange County that offers the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program at all of its elementary schools. Four police officers visit the campuses to teach fifth and sixth graders how to make better choices.
The program has been so popular with students that D.A.R.E. officers are greeted by so many wherever they go.
“The partnership the police department has with the school district today goes back decades,” Kent said. “We have such an amazing relationship, and that’s something I’m very proud of. And every one of our officers is so proud and passionate about the jobs they do being on campuses, interacting with the faculty and the kids and occasionally with parents.”
In his personal life, Kent stays true to his roots and continues to live in Irvine. He wants his children to receive the same quality education that helped him achieve his goal.
“The reason we decided to stay in Irvine is the school district,” he said. “Without question, we wanted our children to go to Irvine Unified School District schools.”