Law enforcement, Checkered Flag Run Foundation, Nielsen and community leaders work together to solve local issues
The Scottsdale Police Department is implementing a set of 29 strategic initiatives to bring forward in 2018 for their department’s Strategic Plan. These changes will be based off the feedback and open dialogue from the Scottsdale Bridge Forum, which occurred last January, between community leaders and top local law enforcement from around the Valley.
“Our Strategic Plan is a living document we update throughout the year, so we may be responsive to our ever changing environment and demands. Trends are examined, locally and nationally, to insure we are addressing, current needs, as well as needs for the future safety and welfare of the city and community,” said Scottsdale Chief of Police and Arizona Chief of the Year, Alan G. Rodbell.
New strategic inputs for 2018 are broken into eight categories which include behavioral health, data, justice, media, policing methods, outreach & engagements, outlook and youth. Examples of initiatives that the Scottsdale Police Department will be introducing include establishing sufficient resources for police personnel dealing with trauma, establishing dialogue opportunities with minority communities, enhancing engagement with the community’s youth and identifying ways to address the needs of the community related to behavioral health.
Chief Rodbell stated that this year’s strategic changes include input received from City Planning, finance, businesses, community members, department members and the Scottsdale Bridge Forum from January 2017. Last year, Scottsdale PD included inputs from the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, a review of the Department by the Center for Public Safety Management, deployment data from Corona Solutions and a national report on Ferguson PD.
“It’s imperative for law enforcement to have a plan in place for crisis situations and the Bridge Forum helps to strengthen the ties between Valley residents, local leaders and law enforcement through discussing solutions to community needs,” said Arizona Attorney General, Mark Brnovich.
The Scottsdale Bridge Forum was hosted by the Checkered Flag Run Foundation and Nielsen.
“In order for us to build a greater economy, we have to use platforms such as the Bridge Forum to educate everyone about the relationship between communities and small businesses. We have an opportunity at Nielsen to be a trailblazer in those efforts by articulating the roles that each of us could play whether community or law enforcement,” said Lamont Robinson, Vice President of Supplier Diversity for Nielsen.
The forum was moderated by Art Hamilton, who served 26 years in the Arizona House of Representatives and included Governor Ducey; Attorney General, Mark Brnovich; Secretary of State, Michele Reagan; County Attorney, Bill Montgomery; Scottsdale Mayor Jim lane; community leaders; civic organizations and several Valley mayors and police chiefs from Tempe, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Peoria and Salt River Pima.
“There is nothing more important to any community or our country as a whole than the rule of law and the fair and equal enforcement of those laws. The Bridge Forum is designed to affect mechanisms to strengthen trust and respect in relationships between Law Enforcement and all the citizens they serve,” said City of Scottsdale Mayor, W.J. “Jim” Lane.
Law enforcement and community members participated in breakout dialogue sessions during the forum in an effort to understand different perspectives, attitudes and beliefs about community policing.
“This Bridge Forum demonstrates what can happen when people talk directly to each other and not past each other. It gives hope that whatever chasms remain between us can still be bridged,” said Art Hamilton, who served 26 years in the Arizona House of Representatives and was the first African-American and only Arizonan to be elected president of the National Conference of State Legislatures.
There have been five Bridge Forums, which have all considered solutions to best policing practices from top law enforcement professionals. Feedback from participants were recorded and used by Arizona’s police departments for additional research and curriculum training, and to better impact the community by using best policing practices.
“We have done several of these Bridge Forums in the past for community stakeholders, and now we want to gear this event towards cities who don’t already have something in place to set the standard for our country,” said [Alan “AP” Powell, founder of Checkered Flag Run Foundation.
The Scottsdale Police Department developed an internal tracking process to follow the progress of its strategic initiatives, which is available to any police department of interest. Departments interested in gaining access should feel free to contact Will Davis at WDav(at)scottsdaleaz.gov.
The Checkered Flag Run Foundation is currently in its planning process for its sixth Bridge Forum in the spring of 2018, which will include both high school and college aged participants. For more information about The Bridge Forum, visit http://www.thebridgeforum.com .
About Checkered Flag Run Foundation
The Checkered Flag Run Foundation provides diverse educational programs that impact under-served students and veterans. They believe access to quality educational opportunities ensures the investment of every student and Veteran getting to cross the “finish line.”
