Policing Leadership Academy (PLA) Graduation of Inaugural Cohort

The PLA is the only police management and leadership training program in the country specifically designed to increase safety and fairness in America’s most violent neighborhoods. As cities continue to grapple with high rates of gun violence, this academy focused on helping leaders address this intractable challenge. The graduation of the first cohort of students means that rising police leaders will now implement learnings in their communities, which represent 20% of homicides in America.

The inaugural cohort included 25 rising police leaders from 24 cities nationwide and the United Kingdom. They graduate having completed a hands-on and interactive six-month curriculum. They will now work on a community capstone project to take the lessons they’ve learned and implement them toward a real issue in their home districts.

At the graduation ceremony, the Crime Lab and PLA teams were joined by law enforcement and executive leadership experts, including Larry Snelling, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department; Keechant Sewell, former Commissioner of the New York Police Department; and Charlie Beck, former Police Commissioner of the Los Angeles Police Department and former Interim Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. We were also joined by police chiefs from across the country who made it possible for the PLA participants to take the time to participate in the Academy.

Read the press release about the event here.

Read our email announcement about the event here.

Read a Chicago Sun-Times piece about the event here.

See additional photos from from the event and a video of the speakers below.