Law enforcement officials are never shy about pointing out that training is the first item to be cut when budgets are tight. Taking officers off the street or back-filling their positions to meet public safety needs and minimum staffing requirements are expensive propositions. It’s even more of an expensive proposition when you factor in paying for their travel and training costs. And yet, officials will also tell you that training is not only important but also essential for increasing professionalism, reducing liability, and enhancing public safety.
Fortunately, the answer to this quandary for crime prevention officers and their citizen counterparts is debuting this week with the launch on February 28, 2014, of the National Crime Prevention Council’s (NCPC) E-learning Channel. Designed by the Community Safety Institute (CSI), one of the nation’s premier law enforcement training organizations, this distance learning platform is the first of its kind specifically dedicated to crime prevention professionals, practitioners, and volunteers.
The NCPC Channel will feature a wide variety of crime prevention topics such as Neighborhood Watch, senior safety, general crime prevention, bullying, home and personal safety, and financial and identity theft. NCPC e-learning subscribers can take courses, watch videos, listen to podcasts, and download materials 24/7 as they increase their knowledge and build their skills as crime prevention practitioners. Users also can receive online credit toward their NCPA National Crime Prevention Specialist Certification.
The NCPC Channel is available for one low, annual fee. Individuals, officers, or their law enforcement agencies can purchase subscriptions, which will give them access to the training courses and keep them up-to-date with RSS feeds, allow them to exchange information with other practitioners, download and maintain files in the system, live chat with other trainees, and track and record all of their training. In addition, trainees can earn “badges” for additional certifications and receive an electronic certification for each and every course successfully completed.
Debuting with nearly a dozen crime prevention courses ranging from Buying Prescription Drugs Online to Neighborhood Watch Leadership and Management, the NCPC Channel will continue to add both individual courses and entire series throughout the year in an effort to ensure crime prevention specialists have the latest training and information available.
Distance learning is the future of law enforcement training and the National Crime Prevention Council is leading the way with its professional, online training courses. To sign-up for these important training courses visit www.ncpc.org and for more information on CSI’s distance learning programs visit www.communitysafetyinstitute.org.
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