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Lifetime has awarded a 22-episode renewal to "The Division," one of its bellwether Sunday primetime series.

The third-season pickup of "The Division" is the first big decision engineered by Barbara Fisher since she joined Lifetime six weeks ago as executive VP of entertainment.

"Division" averages close to 3 million viewers each week, making it one of the highest-rated original dramas on basic cable. Lifetime pairs it Sunday with hit weekly drama skein "Strong Medicine," both of which regularly score better than a 2 in cable homes. That's the benchmark rating for a successful show.

Lifetime will add a third Sunday weekly drama July 21: "For the People" stars Lea Thompson ("Caroline in the City") as a Los Angeles deputy district attorney.

Starring in "Division" as San Francisco police officers are Bonnie Bedelia, Nancy McKeon, Lisa Vidal, Tracey Needham and Taraji P. Henson. The exe producers are Deborah Joy LeVine and Aaron Lipstadt, and the producer is Barry Schkolnick, for Viacom Prods.