Cynthia Puryear serves as the Strategic Communications Advisor for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), where she provides strategic counsel on communications, engagement, and reputation management.
From August 2023 to October 2025, she served as Director of MPD’s Office of Communications, leading the department’s internal and external communications strategy in support of its mission and goals. In that role, she oversaw brand strategy, community outreach, digital engagement, advertising, and volunteer programs—supporting more than 4,000 employees across the nation’s sixth-largest police department.
Before joining MPD, Puryear held senior communications leadership roles in both the public and private sectors, including Performance Food Group, Capital One Financial, and the U.S. Postal Service.
She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross, Virginia Region, and as a Living Donor Executive Committee Member for the National Kidney Foundation.
Puryear holds a Master’s degree in Human Resource Development from Webster University and a Bachelor’s degree in Public Affairs: Radio/TV/Film from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.