About 2,000 police officials from around the country will be in Baltimore in 2010 for the annual conference of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Mayor Sheila Dixon's administration announced yesterday.

The organization, founded more than 30 years ago, was created to "ensure equity in the administration of justice" and to provide education and training. Bishop L. Robinson Sr., Baltimore's first black police commissioner, was among its organizers.

City convention officials said the conference will generate an estimated $2 million and use more than 5,300 hotel room nights. The convention will be held July 7-15, 2010.

"The NOBLE conference is another feather in Baltimore's cap," Dixon said in a statement. "It demonstrates the confidence these law enforcement executives have in our city's growth and progress."

The announcement comes as the police department has faced criticism in some quarters for a lack of diversity in its command staff. Frederick H. Bealefeld III, who is expected to officially become the city's new commissioner later this year, is white.

"The convention is huge, but the legacy, the inspiration, the men and women who are dedicated every day to continuing to make Baltimore safe is really the proof that's in the pudding," Bealefeld said.