PROVIDENCE—Most Reverend Bruce A. Lewandowski, C.Ss.R., Bishop of Providence, has appointed Lieutenant Colonel Robert A. Creamer, MBA, CFE as the Diocese of Providence’s Director of Compliance. Lt. Col. Creamer currently serves as the Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Field Operations of the Rhode Island State Police, where he serves as the second-in-command overseeing more than 650 employees including the State Police, Department of Sheriffs, Capitol Police, Municipal Training Academy, and E-911. The assignment will take effect on January 5, 2026.
“Colonel Creamer brings to our diocese his extensive career experience and stellar reputation as a top leader in our state’s law enforcement,” said Bishop Lewandowski about the appointment. “We enthusiastically welcome him to this important role which includes building upon our diocese’s longstanding efforts to protect children and vulnerable people across our ministries and institutions.”
As diocesan Director of Compliance, Lt. Col. Creamer is responsible for ensuring all diocesan entities and employees follow policies, procedures, and law. The compliance office oversees investigations; conducts background checks of clergy, employees, and volunteers; facilitates cooperation with law enforcement; and provides support, education, and training around policies and risk management.
“I am honored by the trust that Bishop Lewandowski and Monsignor Kenney have placed in me with this appointment, and I look forward to continuing the good work of ensuring and enhancing child protection and security that the Office of Compliance has been engaged in since 1993. My years with the Rhode Island State Police have been deeply meaningful, and I am grateful for that experience,” said Lt. Col. Robert Creamer. “I now look forward to this new chapter and to supporting the mission and good work of the Diocese.”
Lt. Col. Creamer is a member of the FBI Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Task Force. Prior to assuming the duties of the Deputy Superintendent in 2022, he served as Detective Commander, Assistant Detective Commander, Lieutenant Officer-in-Charge of Major Crimes and Financial Crimes Public Corruption Unit, and in numerous other leadership roles as a Detective and Trooper for more than 29 years of service to the State Police.
“The position is a unique position requiring a diversity of talents. The diocese and the Diocesan Review Board for the Protection of Children and Youth are fortunate to fill this position with a person who has such vast experience as a skilled investigator, and is one who practices our faith,” said Judge Stephen M. Isherwood, Associate Judge of the Rhode Island District Court, and Chair of the Diocesan Review Board for the Protection of Children and Youth. “We are pleased with Lt. Col. Robert Creamer’s appointment.”
Lt. Col. Creamer is succeeding the current Director of Compliance, Maj. Kevin O’Brien, himself a former Major and Detective Commander of the Rhode Island State Police, who is retiring after serving in the role since April 2015. Part of the diocese’s decades-long commitment to protecting children, the Office of Compliance was one of the first in the country to be established in 1993 and has always been led by former law enforcement.
Lt. Col. Creamer earned a Master of Science in Cybersecurity from the University of Rhode Island; a Master of Business Administration from Bryant University, and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Providence College. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), was a Hassenfeld Fellow at the Harvard University Kennedy School of Leadership in 2017 and 2023, is an alumnus of Leadership Rhode Island, and graduated from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) 279th National Academy. He is a parishioner at Saint Peter’s Parish in Warwick.
