PEMBROKE — With her recent promotion, Maj. Keyla Bell is the highest-ranking female in the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.
The UNC Pembroke graduate is only the fourth female to rise to major since the North Carolina State Highway Patrol was founded in 1929. Bell is also the first American Indian to wear the gold oak leaf cluster shoulder patch.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Bell said. “Coming from the small town of Red Springs and being Native American, it’s been awesome to receive these accolades. I am very proud of myself. It’s been a challenge, but I’ve always loved challenges.”
Family and friends surprised her with a luncheon at Fuller’s in Pembroke last week to celebrate her promotion.
The lone female on her Little League baseball team, Bell is no stranger to breaking barriers in male-dominated fields. Her ‘against-the-grain’ mentality was instilled in her at a young age by her late grandfather and Air Force veteran Hubert Bell.
“He would always tell me I could achieve anything I wanted to achieve with hard work. My grandfather taught me the importance of reaching my goals. He never discouraged me from going into an all-male organization. He stood behind me. He was my driving force.”
Bell came to UNCP in 1994 and played softball for four years while earning her criminal justice degree. After graduation, she worked for the state Department of Corrections for a year before joining the state Highway Patrol. For the past 24 years, she has dedicated her life to making the state’s highways as safe as possible.
Bell has been assigned to duty stations in Cumberland, Johnston, Rowan and Union counties throughout her career. Currently, she is assigned to the field operations headquarters in Raleigh. Bell hopes her career success will inspire more women to choose the law enforcement path. Out of roughly 1,400 troopers in the state, only 47 are women. In 2019, only 12.8% of law enforcement officers in the United States were female.
“It’s been very challenging, but I would encourage other women to strive for your dream. Break those barriers. Shatter the glass ceiling. In this day and time, we shouldn’t be held back because of our gender. If it is something you want to do, don’t stop until you achieve it.”
