Volunteers in Police Service Curriculum

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Volunteers in Police Service Curriculum

• Presented By
• TEXAS REGIONAL COMMUNITY POLICING INSTITUTE

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How Did VIPS Come to Be?
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Training Overview

• Instructor Introduction
• Student Introduction

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Goals of Presentation

• To familiarize participants with the VIPS program
  and to encourage registration by law enforcement
  agencies with Volunteers in Police Service
• To generate ideas on how to sustain meaningful
  and successful initiatives that pay dividends to
  law enforcement agencies and the community.

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Participant Performance Objectives

• Recognize overall goals of VIPS
• Develop needs assessment tools internally and
  externally to guide VIPS implementation
• List effective marketing and recruitment
  techniques
• Recognize and respond to management and
  administrative issues that can make or break a
  VIPS program

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Participant Performance Objectives

• Discuss background and screening methods for
  volunteers
• List effective ways to communicate the program
• Discuss issues of overall program development
• Develop ideas on funding and sustainability
• Intro. of materials and training methods

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Foundations of the VIPS Program
• 2002 Presidential Initiative
• Department of Justice and IACP Responsibilities
• Concept
• Volunteers from the Community
• Expanding Law Enforcements role in the community
• Volunteers use limited time

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Determining the Types of Activities Available to
  Volunteers
• Law enforcements need for self assessment
• Match needs to the talents and abilities of the
  volunteers
• Support
• All ages can be involved
• Variety of increasingly demanding duties

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Why the Need
• Ease demands on law enforcement
• Fewer officers to execute enforcement
  requirements
• More technical requirements for officers
• Fill critical gaps in program support

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Worth in Social Value
• A more informed citizenry
• Example to young people and others
• Added Value
• Opportunity to learn about law enforcement while
  working with law enforcement
• Learning about citizens concerns

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Resource Commitment
• Varies as to volunteer
• Financial demands on volunteer by law enforcement
• Capacity
• Major partnerships The Big Six
• Individual community members

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Introduction to Volunteers in Police Service

• Ask for Cooperation
• Stakeholders
• Interested groups
• Organizations

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Needs Assessment Support

• Determining How Volunteers Can Be Used
• Legal Issues
• Safety Issues
• Expertise Issues

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Needs Assessment Support

• Filling Needs With Volunteers
• Coordinating position
• Pre-recruitment action required
• Role of the International Association of Chiefs
  of Police
• Match volunteers to the organizations strategic
  plan
• Possible volunteer positions (adapt to local
  needs)

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Recruitment Strategy
• Who is your target?
• Develop a plan
• Create an event
• Hire volunteer recruiter
• Volunteers are here to supplement and complement
  existing agency personnel

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Recruiting and Marketing

• What Does a Citizen Need to Know Before
  Volunteering?
• Position Description
• Time Commitment
• Defined program activities
• Direct Supervisor
• Web-site access for personal record of
  service/journal
• How long should volunteers serve?
• Age criteria
• Citizen Police Academy attendance prior to
  service.

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Examples of Agencies Exclusions or Requirements
• No felony convictions, sexual offense, or theft
  or drug conviction
• Under indictment or in process for same

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Citizens Guide to Volunteering
• Handbook development
• Publish volunteer opportunities
• Make the program meaningful

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Develop Organizational Marketing Materials
• Website
• Brochure
• Flyers / handouts / fact sheets
• Store window posters
• Ads in local papers
• Cable channel access

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Media Assistance
• Public Service Announcements
• News release
• Pre-recruitment Strategy
• Secure top management buy-in
• Develop organization marketing materials

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Recruiting and Marketing

• Citizens Police Academies
• One of the best ways to introduce a civilian to
  the law enforcement profession
• Could be a great gatekeeper for the whole
  volunteer system in police agencies

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Management and Administrative Issues

• Overview of VIPS
• What is a volunteer in VIPS
• VIPS and community policing
• Volunteers in a police culture
• Volunteer restrictions

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Management and Administrative Issues

• Agency Mission, Objectives and Goals
• Define the agencies mission, objectives and goals
• Volunteer concept and political consideration
• Volunteer objectives and goals within agency
  mission
• Clear and specific department guidelines for
  volunteers

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Management and Administrative Issues

• Volunteers in Police Service Management and
  Organization
• Develop a pre-recruitment strategy according to
  the VIPS goal to help resource-constrained
  agencies
• Internal management responsibility
• External management responsibilities
• Who can manage the program
• Training issues
• Liability issues
• Funding issues

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Management and Administrative Issues

• Program Evaluation
• Accomplishing volunteer objectives and goals
• Measuring outcomes

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Measuring Outcomes-VIPS

• Number of agencies who have created/enhanced a
  program as a direct result of VIPS
• Number of new volunteers working with law
  enforcement as a direct result of VIPS
• Increased quality of information presented on the
  VIPS Website

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Measuring Outcomes-Agency

• FTEs
• 1. Patrol officers spend 1 hour per shift doing
  vacation checks during a year and this function
  is now done by your volunteers. You have 50
  patrol officers. This calculates
• 50 officers X 1 hour saved X 228(standard for
  shifts)
• 11,400 hours divided by 1,824 (standard for
  hours)
• 6.25 FTE(full time equivalents)

• VALUED CUSTOMER COPS Re-deployment criteria for
  COPS grantees. FLSA standard is 2080 hours and
  260 shifts

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Measuring Outcomes-Agency

• Police man hours saved-simple calculation is
  volunteer hours that replace a current officer
  accomplished task times officers pay.
• Increased volunteerism in your agency is
  measurable.
• Better citizen/police attitudes measurable
  through survey.
• Better police/citizen attitudes measurable
  through survey.

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Measuring Outcomes-Agency

• Relative to your programs
• Every program should have a mission of its own.
• Utilize programs within a larger problem solving
  mode.

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Measuring Outcomes-Agency

• Example-Cold case fingerprints on minor theft
  cases
• To reduce citizen complaints.
• To improve customer service
• To increase solvability factors
• To reduce officer man hours in minor case
  investigations.

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Background and Screening

• Background and screening
• Record Criteria
• No felony record, etc.
• Agencies screen their own volunteers
• Agencies have control over volunteers

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Background and Screening

• Dangers
• Policing is an inherently dangerous profession
• Legal aspect of volunteers consult legal counsel

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Background and Screening

• Compromise Procedures
• Cant pass screenings
• No compatible slots open
• Contingency plan

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Communications

• Department Buy-in
• Policy and procedure
• Officer training on volunteer use and recruitment
• Officer reward and recognition for
• Successful recruiting efforts
• Successful partnership activity with volunteers
• Supervisory example
• Beat officers should be involved working with
  volunteers whenever possible

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Communications

• Clear Lines of Responsibility for Agency and
  Volunteer
• Policy and procedure manual
• Volunteer handbook
• Benefits of Volunteers to Agency
• Measure savings
• Improvement in police/community relations
• Improve police image
• Reduction in citizen complaints
• Help with levies, funding

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Communications

• Benefits of Volunteers to officers
• Frees officers time for patrol and problem
  solving functions.
• Could reduce radio calls, with telephone crime
  reporting units, handling parking complaints,
  etc.
• Can improve morale of officers allows them to
  come in contact with community members who
  support them. Allows officers to work with
  citizens in a proactive way.

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Communications

• Benefits of Volunteers to Command Staff
• Can have a positive effect on the us vs. them
  element.
• Public trust
• Can reduce manpower demands
• Good way to develop a solid core of community
  support
• Business can adopt an agency for community
  service
• Volunteers become ambassadors for the
  department

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Communications

• Benefits of Volunteers to Community
• Improve law enforcement service
• Citizens can be part of something that is
  concerned with the common good, something bigger
  than themselves
• Increases community pride
• Increases citizen responsibility to take part in
  government
• Volunteers become great role models
• Improves understanding and co-operation between
  the community and their law enforcement officers

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Communications

• Work with Labor Organizations
• Need to secure union support
• Educate the unions and their leadership that
  volunteers do not replace, fill in for, or take
  on duties of sworn or civilian salaried employee

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Communications

• Community Buy-in
• Educate community members on the historical
  perspective of the duty of citizens to be a part
  of their government citizens are not subjects
• Characteristics of good and responsible citizens
  and good and responsible are the same
• Police service is not something that you pay
  someone else to do
• Most recurrent problems of crime and disorder in
  neighborhoods have solutions beyond a traditional
  law enforcement response of patrol and arrest,
  seizure and punishment seeding needs to occur
  and caring, law abiding community members have a
  great role to play

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Communications

• Recognition of Volunteers
• End of year awards
• Inclusion in departmental meeting
• Letters of commendation from the Chief

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Communications

• Web-site Criteria
• Easy to navigate
• Great opening page
• Peer to peer sharing
• Whats new section
• Feedback mechanism
• Encourage use of VIPS logo and links
• Search by type if volunteer position

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Program Development

• Training for Volunteers
• Should Cover
• Police procedures governing purpose and
  utilization of volunteers
• Overall orientation to the police agency
• Job descriptions and responsibilities
• Safety issues
• Volunteer performance and outcome
• Universal volunteer tips to consider

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Program Development

• Define Volunteer
• What is a volunteer?
• Who will volunteer?
• Examples of Volunteer Successes
• Garland, Texas
• San Diego, California
• Alexandria, Virginia

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Program Development

• Pre-Recruitment Strategy
• Create a strategic plan for your volunteer
  initiative so you can be goal oriented
• Develop a Mission Statement
• Create a meaningful volunteer opportunity
• Get the law enforcement organization ready

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Program Development

• Regional Community Policing Institutes (RCPI)
• What is a regional Community Policing Institute?
• How an RCPI can help you and your volunteers

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Sustainability and Funding

• Overview
• Build community investment and collaboration
• Provide alternative opportunities for volunteers
• Value of volunteers in police service
• Individuals
• Law enforcement agency
• Community

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Sustainability and Funding

• Local cost for the program
• Tend to be self-sufficient as they grow
• Develop supervision within their ranks
• Adds skills, depth, resources and support with
  little cost
• Ongoing Marketing of the VIPS Program
• Develop volunteer materials dont reinvent the
  wheel
• There are no set amount of hours to commit
• Make sure systems are in place to evaluate the
  program and help market the program.

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Sustainability and Funding

• Community Cooperation
• Businesses that are interested in supporting
  volunteer efforts by their employees
• Law enforcement / business partnerships are not
  to be overlooked
• Most college degrees require some form of
  volunteerism partner with your institutes of
  higher education

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Sustainability and Funding

• Obtaining Funding
• Government Agencies
• Other funding business groups, community groups,
  etc.

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Review and Summary

• Train the Trainer Overview
• Review goals
• Introduction to VIPS
• What is VIPS
• VIPS relationship to community policing and
  homeland security
• Needs Assessment Support
• Applying the VIPS program
• Volunteers

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Review and Summary

• Recruiting and Marketing
• Planning for success
• Relationship with the citizens
• Management and Administration
• Role of the volunteer
• Management responsibilities
• Background and Screening
• Volunteers requirements
• Legal implications

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Review and Summary

• Communications
• Department acceptance of VIPS
• Community acceptance of VIPS
• Program Development
• Training
• Volunteer activities
• Funding and sustainability
• Value of volunteers
• Outreach for funding

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THANK YOU

• Terry Lucas
• Captain of Operations
• Alvin, Texas Police Department
• 281-585-7107
• Tlucas_at_apd.cityofalvin.com