Effective internal and external communication has never been more critical for law enforcement than it has been over the past year. Police professionals face new challenges every day and depend on the IACP for continued support through research, advocacy, networking, and training.
At the same time, however, the IACP faced new challenges in delivering these crucial services to members when access to in-person professional and social gatherings became infeasible for the foreseeable future due to COVID-19. Nonetheless, the field’s dependence on the IACP greatly increases during times of crisis, so it was incumbent upon the IACP to develop new, creative delivery methods to ensure access to critical services and resources.
This need led the IACP to develop entirely new systems and training programs to accommodate the current challenges agencies face—travel restrictions, physical distancing requirements, budget cuts, and calls for increased training and professional development. Many of these new methods are outlined below. Based on member and user feed-back about their success and overall benefits, they will remain available to agencies long after the physical distancing and travel restrictions associated with COVID-19 have been lifted.
IACPlearn
Last year, the IACP launched IACPlearn—a new hub for all on-demand and live virtual learning such as trainings, webinars, podcasts, and workshops from previous in-person and virtual events. IACPlearn provides a suite of courses that helps police professionals better understand and implement policies and practices that promote positive, organization-wide outcomes. This new system allows users to see their learning history, completion certificates, and IACP credits earned. Topics include community-police engagement, leadership, ethics, human and civil rights, technology, and more. With IACPlearn, police professionals can access training and earn IACP credits anytime, from any device.
Live Virtual Training
The IACP also focused on delivering accessible, cost-effective, and sustainable learning and development opportunities needed to address the new challenges 2020 posed to officers. This included both new training and previously in-person training opportunities that were adapted to the virtual environment.
For example, in June 2020, the IACP launched the inaugural First-Line Leadership (FLL) Virtual Course. Intended for newly promoted and aspiring sworn and civilian first-line supervisors, the program offers a foundational understanding of proven and actionable leadership strategies, concepts, and skills. Typically delivered in person over three consecutive days, the First-Line Leadership program was modified to span six weeks in the virtual space.
In July 2020, the IACP launched the inaugural Virtual Women’s Leadership Institute (WLI), intended for women leaders, individuals responsible for the professional development of women employees, and those who wish to better understand the specific challenges women face in the workplace. Previously delivered in person over five consecutive days, the virtual WLI was modified to span eight weeks in the virtual space.
Both of these courses feature two virtual live events per week where attendees meet online with IACP-certified instructors and roughly 30 classmates to learn, discuss, and apply new leadership principles. The structure of these courses offers learning application and networking opportunities to promote collaboration and discussion among course attendees. Attendees participate in small group discussions via virtual breakout rooms to discuss and apply course curricula, complete at-home application assignments, and collaborate with peers outside of class time via virtual discussion threads.
Virtual courses not only offer the convenience of joining the classes from anywhere, but they also allow for new learning application opportunities.
Virtual courses not only offer the convenience of joining the classes from anywhere, but they also allow for new learning application opportunities that are less feasible during a shorter class duration. For example, the virtual WLI features a new capstone project that attendees work on in small groups during the eight-week class and present to the instructors and classmates at the end. Each presentation offers a well-researched and thought-out roadmap for agencies to use to enhance services in a critical area of policing, such as
community-police engagement, recruiting and retaining women, and law enforcement suicide prevention.
One WLI participant noted,
The course was fantastic and exceeded my expectations. The instructors were great—informative, enthusiastic, kind… I loved the fact that we had eight weeks to develop working relationships with one another. I can’t believe this course used to only be one week long! It’s so great to have the time to delve into the course material and build relationships over time.
One FLL participant shared,
The opportunity to have a shared space with people from all over the U.S. and Canada was amazing. We not only learned from the instructors but from all attendees as well.
Hybrid Training
For agencies eager to deliver training programs during the pandemic but less interested in a fully virtual approach, the IACP devised a hybrid learning approach. To ensure the safety of instructors, the IACP collaborated with partner agencies to set up the necessary facilities and technology for the curriculum to be presented virtually while participants convened onsite. Considering state and local gathering restrictions and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations, the IACP worked with partner agencies to establish guidelines creating a controlled and safe environment for individuals participating onsite. This method allows for decreased travel and expense costs and offers increased flexibility in the duration and timing of the training (e.g., agencies who might have staffing shortages can select a hybrid course that runs for a few hours each day over a longer duration rather than a full-time one-week course onsite that strains operational capacity). Hybrid training programs in topical areas like leadership development, community-police engagement, and officer safety
and wellness have been delivered to agencies.
Virtual Conferences
In 2020, the IACP hosted its three largest conferences virtually. The Technology Conference; Drugs, Alcohol, and Impaired Driving (DAID) Conference; and IACP Annual Conference used digital delivery formats that offered attendees safe, convenient, and cost-effective access to the same quality education and networking opportunities available at the previously in-person events.
Highlights of IACP 2020
Education. The IACP 2020 Virtual Training Evet and Expo (IACP 2020) boasted more than 175 education sessions across the three-day event. IACP 2020 education sessions were delivered in three formats: live, simulive, and on-demand. Education sessions remain available to registered attendees for 12 months following the event and are available for purchase to those who missed the event via IACP’s new learning management system, IACPlearn. This unprecedented opportunity allows for continued development and reinforcement of the material and allows agencies to share critical workshops with those who were not able to benefit from them during the event.
Exhibitors and Sponsors. Attendees were also able to connect with more than 160 exhibitors and sponsors during the event through virtual booths, scheduled video meetings, and impromptu chat messages. As with past in-person events, exhibitors offered attendees easy access to information on a wide range of products and services such as communications equipment, education and training tools, mobile technology, and investigation and detection equipment. The IACP recognizes that operations continue and may even require new solutions during times of change and crisis and ensured that attendees still received the same access to and communication with key law enforcement partners and service providers.
Networking. The concept of critical communications includes opportunities to share information and best practices with fellow police professionals from across the globe. IACP 2020 boasted dozens of virtual committee, section, and division meetings as well as topical networking meetups for attendees who share similar interests in topics such as social media, peer support, police training, physical fitness, and more.
Conclusion
Increased connectivity, convenient and cost-effective learning opportunities, and greater access for personnel who have not had the opportunity to attend these professional development events in the past—these are only a few of the benefits associated with the IACP’s capability to offer new and reimagined educational opportunities in a variety of virtual and hybrid formats. Most important, it allows police professionals to continue developing during a time when more seems to be asked of police executives and officers every day.
For more information on available training opportunities, visit IACPlearn or email learn@theIACP.org.
Please cite as:
Nicole LeFort and Trey Ernandez, “Reimaging IACP Learning and Development,” IACP@Work, Police Chief (March 2021): 64-65.
