Over 10,000 inquiries a year come into the public information office of the New York Police Department. They go through one person, a 27-year veteran of the force, recently promoted to Deputy Chief — the first African-American woman to achieve the position and only the third in the department’s 168-year history to achieve the rank. She also calls herself a proud graduate of Washington High School.

Kim Royster may have been born in New York City, but she was raised in Washington, and graduated from Washington High School in 1980 before returning north to pursue a business and vocal career. What she found in the big city was the NYPD. After a few years working for the department in a clerical capacity, she decided to make it her life.

“I caught the bug after about two years,” Royster said. “I just decided it was a great institution to be a part of and I wanted to work with people — the best way to get involved with people is to become a police officer. But I never knew that it would be the launch of my career.”

According to Royster’s resume, it’s been quite a career. She was sworn in as a police officer in July 1987, promoted to detective in 1992; sergeant in 1997; sergeant special assignment in 2001; lieutenant in 2002; captain in 2006; deputy inspector in 2009; and inspector in 2012. She has served in the Police Academy, the 5th and 13th Precincts, the 7th Precinct Detective Squad, Patrol Borough Manhattan South, the Office of Management Analysis and Planning, the Office of the Deputy Commissioner of Public Information, Detective Borough Manhattan, Detective Borough Brooklyn, the Intelligence Division, the Internal Affairs Bureau, the Criminal Justice Bureau and the Public Information Division. She has also commanded the Manhattan South Investigations Unit, and served as the Executive Officer of the 5th Precinct in Chinatown.

While her career was on the upward trajectory, she also had the opportunity to continue with her singing, in a professional capacity.

“Whatever your skillset is, it can be utilized in whatever unit we have here,” Royster said. “It seemed like I had landed a position where I could use my voice. Who would have thought that I’d be able to do that?”

At a New York City gala, Royster sang for President George W. Bush during his second term; when President Bill Clinton signed the Crime Bill, she sang for that event, as well. And when she served as liaison to the NAACP National Conference, she met President Barack Obama.

“Who meets three presidents in their career, personally?” Royster laughed. “I am blessed.”

Royster’s climb to the commanding officer of the NYPD Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Public Information meant a series of tests on the way up, but after achieving the rank of captain, every other position was by appointment by the police commissioner. With a force of 34,500 officers competing for those jobs, Royster had to prove she had the leadership and management skills.

In July 2010, she was promoted to her current position where she has citywide jurisdiction in a job that requires her to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. She oversees a team of 21 officers, which disseminates the news for high profile events like Hurricane Sandy.

“During Hurricane Sandy, we were out assisting and rescuing the people of New York. There were police officers that were not only first responders, but victims who lost their own homes. If we hadn’t shown what the NYPD was doing, I don’t think people would have known what actually occurred,” Royster said.

Royster’s actions recently helped solve a cold case that made national news, that of the 1991 murder of “Baby Hope.”

“Up until July 23 of this year, we had not had one tip on that case,” Royster said. “Detectives came to me and said we need a push on this. In addition to pushing it out to the media, we had a sergeant speak to Latino news stations. The next day, we get a tip which led to the mother of the child and that led to the killer of that child.”

Under her command, the NYPD has developed a team that deals strictly with social media, which requires constant monitoring.

“There’s just so much news. … I handle about 10,000 inquiries a year,” she said.

Royster said she does get down to Washington to see her mother, Josephine Royster, but with the demands of the job, it happens less than she’d like it to. She credits her family for her success with the NYPD.

“But for my family and my husband, I would not be where I am today,” she said. “That’s very important (to say) because you never get anywhere by yourself.”

Royster and her husband, Gregory Thomas, live in Brooklyn and have two sons, Joseph and Tyler.