Here is the press release on the Lowell Police Department's Smart Policing Initiative
September 19, 2014
First Line Supervisor Leadership Training
The Lowell Police Department (LPD), in conjunction with Middlesex Community College Corporate and Community Education and Training Department and Suffolk University’s Dr. Brenda Bond, Associate Professor in the Institute for Public Service, has created an intensive leadership course for first line supervisors. This leadership course was made possible through a Smart Policing Initiative Grant awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Through the LPD’s Smart Policing projects which began in 2010, the department has worked hard to institutionalize evidence-based policing. In recent years, the LPD’s Command Staff have identified that there is a significant lack of leadership courses available for first line supervisors, particularly Sergeants.
First line supervisors oversee and direct officers on the street in carrying out the directives issued by commanding officers. They are critical to the success of a police department. These individuals are often the face of the organization within the community and they serve as role models for patrol officers that look to them for both guidance and leadership. First line supervisors are routinely involved in complex incidents and often have to make quick and important decisions. Through the 8-week course, the front line supervisors will learn more about their leadership styles, how to effectively manage others, evidence-based practices in policing, accountability, and performance management. The curriculum was developed by, law enforcement professionals, researchers and instructors from the Lowell Police Department, Middlesex Community College and Suffolk University. In addition to first line supervisors from the LPD, officers from Chelmsford, Dracut, Cambridge, Bedford and Tyngsborough will participate in the training. The LPD will offer this course again in early 2015.
