To bolster CGC's unique value proposition for police departments, we've partnered with former Police Chief Kris Allison and former County Sheriff, Corey Falls.
Police and County Sheriff departments face the tumultuous dynamics of race in an ever increasing multicultural society. Interactions between the community and police are on the front lines of national discourse and politics of race in America. The inherent dangers of responding to criminal activity, protecting communities and representing local municipalities on a daily basis make police more than law enforcers, they are COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPECIALISTS.
CGC provides law enforcement departments a customized Conversations Journey® training process that offers a unique insight into racial dynamics of a 21st century society through a lens of historical context. We value law enforcement officers as Community Engagement Specialists and provide a unique lens that equips them with a unique cultural discernment that improves cultural competence.
PROBLEM: Law enforcement officers across the nation are on the front lines of America's culture wars. Policymakers across federal, state and local agencies require law enforcement agencies to develop and implement strategies that address issues of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) inside departments along with incorporating empathy and racial equity in community policing. This relatively recent mandate in the last decade compounds the work with which police departments are already tasked and adds a layer of new complexity.
DISCLAIMER: We do not seek to train police officers how to do their job as law enforcement officers. There's no blame and no shame in our approach. We do not offer anecdotes of personal experiences with law enforcement nor discuss such interactions. We see law enforcement officers as Community Engagement Specialists who interact with every sector of society on a daily basis. This is a unique role that requires unique insight and understanding of the evolution of communities and society.
OUR APPROACH: CGC's Conversations Journey® meets the standards for orientation, training, professional and leadership development in the areas of DEI and racial equity. Unlike typical DEI and racial equity training programs, our unique process serves as a prerequisite that immerses participants in an experience of collective learning and discovery about today's society perceived anew through a lens of historical context. Our focus is on understanding how laws, systems, public policies and private sector practices across all sectors of society were established and have evolved over 26 generations. This new knowledge expands an officer's aperture of understanding about generational community trauma and intersections of inherited laws, systems, race and economics that sustain and, at times, exacerbate the toxic conditions that law enforcement must deal with.
SUMMER 2020: Initial meeting with Police Chief and Captain led to a contractual agreement to provide training and a strategic partnership to develop a toolkit as a model for police departments.
ENGAGEMENT: An initial yearlong engagement included relationship building, leadership participation in our CGC Conversations Journey, separate staff participation in two additional Conversations Journey training experiences, development of a community podcast and ongoing consulting and advising. The agreement was extended to continue our partnership and work with CPPD.
RESULTS: At the end of 2022, the CPPD Police Chief retired. In early 2023, she joined CGC as a consulting partner to continue the work we developed in the department together through her leadership. After experiencing a CGC Conversations Journey, a neighboring police chief joined with the CPPD chief in recommending CGC to Oregon's statewide training of all first responders for consideration and adoption. The state of Oregon has expressed considerable interest and is currently considering opportunities to incorporate our Conversations Journey process in its training schedule.
Ashland Police Department | CGC Participant
"Mike and Emily have an incredible presentation that speaks to the history of our nation and how race issues have been a focal point throughout so much of it, much more so than many people (including me) realize. Their presentation brings historical information to us in a non-accusatory manner, asking that we try to go forward in unity with a better understanding of the past."