U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

Summer 1999, No. 13

Community Oriented Policing Services

On the Beat

www.usdoj.gov/cops/

On May 12th, President Clinton

stood before members of

Congress, the law enforcement

community, and mayors from around the

country and announced that the COPS

program had funded the 100,000th officer ahead of schedule and under budget.

“Six years ago, I promised to provide local law enforcement with the

resources to add 100,000 officers to our

communities,” said President Clinton.

“With today's grants, we have made good

on that promise.”

The announcement of $96 million in

grants to 527 communities to fund the

hiring of more than 1,400 community

policing officers brought the total of officers funded to more than 100,000. To

date, more than 50,000 officers have

been hired and redeployed and are working in the community to fight crime.

“Amid dropping crime rates and the

advancement of community policing, the

funding of 100,000 officers is yet one

more victory for local law enforcement

and communities across

this country,” said Joseph

E. Brann, Director of the

COPS Office. “We should

not forget, however, that

the success of the COPS

program results from a

Federal commitment to

supporting communitybased solutions to local

concerns. The COPS program and the partnerships

it has helped forge have

proven that community

policing is a highly effective crime-fighting strategy.” 

The COPS Office

was created in 1994 and

authorized $8.8 billion over six

years to advance community policing

and add 100,000 officers to the street.

This important milestone was reached in

less than five years. 

The COPS Office is authorized to

continue awarding grants and is still

accepting applications for grants under

the Universal Hiring Program. n

During the ceremony to commemorate the funding of the

100,000th officer, President Clinton announced that he was

introducing a new omnibus crime bill. Included in this bill is

the 21st Century Policing Initiative, which would continue

the COPS program until 2005 and add 30,000 to 50,000 more

officers to the street. The 21st Century Initiative also

includes:

n $50 million to help economically distressed

communities retain their COPS funded officers;

COPS Funds 100,000th Officer

President Clinton Proposes Continuing COPS

Program, Adding 30,000 to 50,000 More Officers

ìIn making America's

thin blue line thicker 

and stronger, our nation

will be safer.î

ó President Clinton. 

n $350 million to help state and local law enforcement

agencies tap into new technologies to fight crime 

more effectively;

n $125 million for a community crime prevention 

program to engage the entire community in 

preventing and fighting crime; and

n $200 million for a Community Prosecutors Grant 

Program for the hiring of community prosecutors 

and the establishment and expansion of community 

prosecution programs.n
DirectorísColumn

On the Beat

COPS in Schools Program Helps

Communities Prevent School

Violence

Headlines about violence in our

schools have generated a surge of interest

in school safety. Unfortunately, these

crimes are not isolated incidents. In an

effort to prevent future tragedies and help

communities develop their own responses

to the problem of school violence, the

COPS Office recently announced its first

round of $70 million in COPS in Schools

grants to 330 communities to fund the

hiring of 600 school resource officers.

The COPS in Schools program,

announced in October 1998 at the White

House School Safety Summit, helps communities hire police officers to work in

schools. Grants are awarded for up to

$125,000 to pay for the salary and benefits of each new officer over a three year

period.

COPS in Schools assists communities in hiring police officers to combat

school-related crime and violence. The

program requires police departments to

work together with schools and use community policing strategies to combat

school-related violence. Schools also

have the ability to be creative in utilizing

their officers, with some providing such

services as conflict resolution and mediation, as well as drug and alcohol abuse

education.

School districts all across the country

know first hand that officers in schools

make a difference. For the Ohio towns of

Perry and Mentor, the experience of having officers walk a school beat has

proven so positive that the towns plan to

use a COPS grant to add additional officers. 

In another Ohio town — Madison —

School Superintendent Stan Heffner plans

to place an officer in a Madison High

School. “There are a lot of positive

effects that can come from this,” says

Heffner. “His or her presence will act as a

deterrent.”

In Dowagiac, Michigan, Principal

Kenneth Dockerty already has plans for

the COPS funded officer he will have in

his school this fall. “We're excited about

the possibility of some of the things the

officer will be able to do, in terms of conflict resolution.”

Middle School Principal Ron

Walsworth agreed, saying “It's not that

we need to have a police officer here

because we have so many problems. It's

going to be somebody that the kids can

go to with every day questions and concerns. It will be helpful for the kids to see

a police officer as an everyday guy.” n

2

On May 12th, the COPS Office

achieved a major milestone, announcing that we had surpassed the

President's goal of funding 100,000 community policing officers. That caused me to

reflect back on the last 4 1⁄2 years, which

have gone by quickly, and

the incredible work and contributions of our staff who

have accomplished so much.

Many of you have

heard me comment on the

fact that funding 100,000

officers is not the overarching goal of this Office - it is

only a means to an end. The

ultimate goal is to assist state

and local police agencies in their efforts to

embrace and institutionalize community

policing. Thanks to your efforts, that is

exactly what has been happening. 

The Regional Community Policing

Institutes we have funded are providing

unprecedented levels of training to support

police professionals and citizens throughout

the country. The 3-1-1 (national non-emergency number) pilot sites are pioneering

improved call management and service

delivery strategies while preserving the

effectiveness of 9-1-1. The Distressed

Neighborhoods and COPS in Schools programs are investing valuable resources into

troubled neighborhoods and threatened locations where we can do more to reduce

crime rates. These are but some examples of how policing strategies are being

enhanced and improved upon as a result

of community policing.

The real success in all of this is due to

the hard work and dedication that has

been demonstrated by people at the local

level - the officers on the front line,

community members, local elected officials, and the chiefs and sheriffs who are

committed to the principles of community

policing. That is where the credit and the

accolades should be directed. 

Over the span of my thirty years of

service in local law enforcement and with

the Department of Justice, I have never witnessed the kind of success and impact that

police have experienced over the past seven

years. We are truly in a renaissance era of

policing. Crime rates continue to decline

and community confidence and support are

continuing to increase. Our vision of what is

possible in our profession and within our

communities has changed significantly and

we are no longer content to merely react to

crime and disorder. If we continue to build

upon the strong foundation that community

policing has provided us, I am confident that

we will gain even more ground in our efforts

to reduce crime and provide for healthier

communities.

By the time this edition of our newsletter reaches you, I will have concluded my

service with the COPS Office and will be

back home in California - in a state of semiretirement and total relaxation! But my

thoughts will continue to be with all of you

as you continue to make a difference in your

respective communities and in this profession. I wish each and every one of you continued success in your own endeavors. I

leave Washington with a sense of pride and

accomplishment in what we have achieved

together. Thank you for your continued support of the COPS Office and your relentless

commitment to making a difference in your

communities.
How do you have a uniformed, armed officer in a school

setting, and not create a sense of impending danger?

Forks Township, Pennsylvania, found a solution —

make the officer part of the faculty.

At the Shawnee Intermediate School in the Easton Area

School district, Officer James Rowden not only provides protection for students and teachers if needed, but also interacts

with students, and provides counsel and guidance. “He's very

kid-oriented,” according to Bernadette Meck, superintendent of

Easton area schools. “They respect him and look up to him.

They know he represents law and order, but they have no

qualms about going up and talking to him.”

Contact: Chief Leon Fisher

Forks Township Police Department, 610-330-2200

Alexandria, Virginia takes innovative, proactive steps to

prevent school conflict and violence. The Youth

Conflict and Violence Program was established to give

students a forum to discuss and resolve conflicts before they

escalate into larger problems of violence. The program is a

coalition between students, faculty, the police department,

courts, human services, and mental health agencies. 

Here is how it works — the program receives tips from students, faculty, or agencies who spot potential or current conflicts and calls a meeting of the involved parties. The meeting

is facilitated by representatives from the student body and pertinent agencies and offers a means of early intervention and a

neutral setting for conflict resolution.

Contact: Deputy Chief Earl Cook

Alexandria Police Department, 703-838-4700

Police officers in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, are getting involved in children's lives early with the Super Kids

program. Officers work with kindergartners and 2nd and

5th graders in each of their thirty-eight elementary schools.

When the Super Kids officers are not in the classroom, they are

in the lunchroom or on the playground mentoring students and

preserving school safety.

Super Kids starts in kindergarten classrooms, where officers teach children to recognize inappropriate behavior and

safety hazards. They teach that police officers are your friends,

while strangers are not. Officers also instruct students on character building and conflict management through examples and

role-play. As the kids get older, officers begin incorporating

lessons on violence, peer pressure, drug and alcohol abuse, and

good decision making. This early exposure sets the stage for a

positive relationship between students and officers throughout

their schooling.

Contact: Sergeant David Clayton

Winston-Salem Police Department, 336-773-7944

I

n Fontana, California, Officer Shawn Hare created and

administers the After School Activities Program (ASAP) to

offer children educational and recreational alternatives and

incentives for staying out of trouble and in school. ASAP is

unique, in that it requires parental involvement. Parents with

children who enroll in ASAP are required to attend a parenting

class or become involved in the ASAP program. Officer Hare

actively recruits parents and children to participate, by marketing the ASAP program at fairs in the apartment complexes surrounding the schools, which house 90 percent of the student

body.

ASAP is working. Since its inception, disciplinary problems have been reduced by 77 percent. Truancy rates among

children participating in the ASAP program are down by 74

percent. Officer Hare is proud of these short-term measures of

success, but is even more proud of the long-term impact ASAP

is having on its participants.

Contact: Lieutenant Terry Holderness

Fontana Police Department, 909-350-7733

whatWORKS- MAKING SCHOOLS SAFE

3
Questions & Answers - MORE Redeployment

What is redeployment?

Redeployment is when sworn officers, currently employed by the

grantee law enforcement agency, become available to participate in community policing as a direct result of the purchase of technology or equipment or the hiring of civilian support staff.

What is a Redeployment Tracking Plan?

A tracking plan is used to track the hours saved as a result of the implementation of technology or hiring of civilians funded under a MORE

grant. Each agency must choose a tracking method to best fits their

needs. Acceptable methods of tracking redeployment include:

n work study plans

n studies using sampling techniques

n tracking hours directly 

n any reasonable time estimate techniques

How is redeployment calculated?

To calculate redeployment, law enforcement agencies must determine

time saved due to the new technology, equipment, or civilian personnel.

COPS uses the standard of an average officer working 228 eight-hour

shifts each year or 1824 hours per year. To achieve the redeployment of

one full time equivalent (FTE) officer, the time savings for one year

must equal 1824 hours (1824 hours = 1 FTE). If eight officers file

reports with new COPS funded laptops that save one hour per shift per

officer for one year, they have saved eight hours per day or 1824 hours

for the year and redeployed 1 FTE by using time saving technology.

What is the minimum number of FTEs an agency must redeploy?

The number of FTEs that MORE '96 & '98 grantees must redeploy as a

result of time savings achieved through the purchase of equipment or

technology or the hiring of personnel is based on the amount of the grant

award. This number is determined by dividing a portion (75 percent) of

the total project cost by a portion (75 percent, but not to exceed

$25,000) of the cost of an officer. The result is the minimum number of

FTEs the grantee must redeploy. This differs for MORE '95 grantees,

who must reach the redeployment goal stated in their grant application

and grant award.

How long do agencies have to reach full redeployment?

Grantees should achieve full redeployment within one year of the technology becoming fully operational or the civilian personnel hired.

Deadline (no cost) extensions can be requested so that each MORE

grantee has adequate time to achieve redeployment.

What is required of agencies to stay in compliance with redeployment

requirements?

Agencies receiving COPS MORE grants must:

n develop and implement a reasonable Redeployment Tracking Plan

n be able to demonstrate enhanced community policing activities as

a direct result of time saved

n complete MORE Progress Reports when required

n retain the federally funded technology, equipment, or civilians 

and the resulting redeployment

A New Tool for Grantees

The COPS Office recently produced Grant

Monitoring Standards and Guidelines for

Hiring and Redeployment, a guide to

COPS grant compliance standards. This

technical document provides information

on the administration and compliance

requirements of COPS grants. COPS staff

will use this document in determining

whether or not grantees are complying

with their Hiring and Making Officer

Redeployment Effective (MORE) grant

terms and conditions. The guide is available to grantees to use as a tool to properly manage COPS grants.

Grant Monitoring Standards and

Guidelines for Hiring and Redeployment

reviews the eight compliance categories

for COPS Hiring and MORE grants, provides a definition of each of the categories, and lists their terms and conditions.

It also offers a comprehensive list of performance standards and indicators for each

compliance category, which indicate if

grantees are meeting the intent of the

COPS grant programs. The eight compliance categories include:

• community policing;

• time savings for redeployment;

• retention;

• allowable costs;

• source of matching funds;

• supplanting;

• training; and

• reporting.

Copies of the guide are available on the

COPS website at www.usdoj.gov/cops

or by calling the U.S. Department of

Justice Response Center at

1. 800. 421.6770.

Q

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Summer 1999 4
The Pequannock Police Department (PPD) serves a community of 15,000 in New Jersey. They have received

COPS grants to hire two new community policing officers

and advance community policing. With these awards, the PPD

joined forces with the Boys and Girls Club to reach out to local

youth, offer safe activities, and prevent juvenile delinquency. 

Community policing officers of the PPD focus on building

relationships with area youth. They spend time in area schools,

talking with students and teachers, teaching drug and alcohol

education classes, and participating in school activities. But primarily, they are role models to students.

The officers work out of a substation in the Boys and Girls

Club. They counsel students who come to the center to participate in after-school activities and help students with their homework during the Power Hour tutoring program. They ensure that

students have fun, safe activities that will keep them off the

street by sponsoring teen nights and other alternative activities.

The youth take advantage of having an officer in the facility by

sharing their problems and seeking advice. Sergeant Rick

Jennings, who heads up the project, stresses the importance of

building a relationship with the students. He says, “We

try to help kids before a little problem becomes a big

one. It is much easier for a kid to talk to an officer on

his turf than to walk into a police station. Students are

coming up to me with problems. It's definitely working.”

The PPD reaches out to targeted youth as part of

their effort to prevent juvenile delinquency. Officers

regularly come into contact with young people engaging in at-risk, yet non-criminal, behavior. Since the

partnering of the PPD and the Boys and Girls Club,

officers no longer have to wait for the delinquency to

escalate into a police matter before taking action.

Instead, they refer these juveniles to the Boys and Girls

Club's delinquency prevention program.

The PPD also sponsors the Cops 'n Jocks program,

to build trust between athletes and police. Off duty

police officers attend games and practices, sitting on

the sidelines and offering advise and counsel. Officers

use these opportunities to build a rapport with

teenagers and dispel the common beliefs that cops are only there

to arrest people. The coach of the high school track team noted

how much students look forward to the arrival of the officers

who drop by their practices. “It is nice to see kids running

toward a police car instead of running away from it.”

The youth have taken an interest in the officers and developed a relationship of mutual respect and friendship. They often

tell officers about how they avoided trouble for fear of disappointing them. The youth feel comfortable coming to them to

discuss everything from a fight with a parent to problems with

substance abuse to domestic violence in their homes. Parents

often come by the Boys and Girls Club to let officers know

about problems with youth in the neighborhood. This open relationship is allowing officers to intervene early and prevent situations from escalating.

In the three years since the PPD adopted community policing and dedicated resources to working with youth, the township

has enjoyed a significant decrease in the nuisance crimes that

most affect the quality of life in Pequannock. Graffiti no longer

pollutes the neighborhood and youths are no longer on the street

corners as they were a few years ago. Under-age drinking incidents and related offenses have decreased. And residents are taking notice. They feel safe and confident in their police force and

the local youth. The tide has turned in Pequannock. n

Community Profile- PREVENTING JUVENILE CRIME: PEQUANNOCK TOWNSHIP

Summer 1999 5

Sgt. Rick Jenning demonstrates the equipment in his patrol car

to Junior Police Academy participants at the Boys & Girls Club

ìIt is nice to see kids running 

toward a police carinstead of 

running away from it.

î
July 18-21 U.S. Department of Justice

Annual Conference on Criminal Justice Research 

and Evaluation

Washington, D.C

Contact: (703) 684-5300

July 27-30 Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 

Prevention

National Youth Gang Symposium

Las Vegas, Nevada

Contact: (800) 446-0912

July 31 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

Putting the Community into Community Policing

Longview, Texas

Contact: Ken Howard (202) 633-1495

August 3-4 Child Abuse Prevention Center of Utah

Twelfth Annual Multidisciplinary Conference on 

Child Abuse and Domestic Violence

Ogden, Utah

Contact: Teresa Brookline (801) 393-3366

August 16-18 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

Community Policing Against Violence

Ventura, California

Contact: Ken Howard (202) 633-1495

August 28 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

Putting the Community into Community Policing

Fort Worth, Texas

Contact: Ken Howard (202) 633-1495

Aug 31-Sep. 1 U.S. Department of Health and Human 

Services

Next Millennium Conference: Ending Domestic 

Violence

Chicago, Illinois

Contact: (800) 281-9519.

September 1-2 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

Dimensions in Problem Solving - Making It Work 

for You

San Diego, California

Contact: Ken Howard (202) 633-1495

September 14-15 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

Neighborhood Revitalization

South Lake Tahoe, Nevada

Contact: Ken Howard (202) 633-1495

September 20-23 The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services

East Coast Community Policing Annual 

Conference

Knoxville, Tennessee

Contact: Karl Bickel (202) 633-1495

September 26-28 U.S. Department of Justice

Regional Law Enforcement-Corrections 

Partnership Workshop

Raleigh, North Carolina

Contact: Erin Von Tobel (703) 684-5300

For more information or to receive a free copy of this newsletter, write to the COPS Office, Attn: On the Beat, 

1100 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20530, or visit our Website at www.usdoj.gov/cops

You can also call the US Department of Justice Response Center at 1.800.421.6770

Within the Washington area, call 202.307.1480

ON THE BEAT

Summer 1999 No. 13 

COPS Calendar

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