CJUS 620 - Police Organization & Leadership

Credit Hours: 3
Lecture Hours: 3
Laboratory (or Other) Hours: 0

Prerequisite(s): CJUS 500 and CJUS 510
Restriction(s): Students must be enrolled in the Master of Science in Criminal Justice program

Corequisite(s): None

The course examines how police leaders earn legitimacy in the eyes of the public in order to achieve a social contract with communities and encourage law abiding behavior. Particular attention is given to the complexity of how police leaders achieve this goal in a diverse community with histories of racial and ethnic conflict. Students will analyze the role police administrators play in dealing with the issue of stress, its effect on officer well-being and the delivery of critical services to the community. Crime and deterioration in certain communities in the United States will be closely examined from a police leadership perspective with an emphasis on causes and cures.

Student Learning Outcomes of the Course:

Describe strategies used by police leaders to achieve a social contract with communities.
Evaluate the impact of politics on policing agencies.
Explore how distrust between police and citizens affects police strategies, especially in areas with a history of racial and ethnic conflict.
Analyze the effects of stress on effective policing.
Formulate legal arguments on changes in police organizations, utilizing one of the three models of change in organizations.