Developing a Partnership Between a University and a Police Department: The UBSOM-BPD Partnership Project

• NCJ Number: 181296
• Author(s): Raymond G. Hunt Ph.D.; Pamela K. Beal Ph.D.
• Date Published: December 1999
• Length: 170 pages
• Grant Number(s): 95-IJ-CX-0081
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Program/Project Description

Annotation

This report describes the partnership between the University at Buffalo School of Management (UBSOM) and the Buffalo Police Department (BPD).

Abstract

The partnership was intended to help the BPD build effective strategies for community policing. From the outset, the partnership was committed to a few general guidelines: (1) The research agenda would be driven primarily by the practitioners in the form of a steering committee; (2) Feedback systems should be developed to determine what worked and what didn't; and (3) Organizational change should be led from the middle. Highlights of this successful partnership include: (1) The University is now positioned as a trusted resource and service provider; (2) The steering committee provided a forum for discussing departmental issues and a vehicle for feedback from patrol and the detective bureau; (3) Middle managers became involved in projects to improve the department; (4) Planning proceeded by recognizing and capitalizing on opportunities rather than by a pre-formulated plan; (5) Information systems were developed with the assistance of student interns; and (6) The Regional Community Policing Center was established to continue and expand the partnership with the University. Notes, bibliography, appendixes