Chief Cameron McLay of the Pittsburgh Police Department plans to implement a comprehensive training program to transform the culture of the department. The program will involve training over 70 officers in ethical decision-making using the Leadership in Police Organizations curriculum. It will also establish a train-the-trainer program to spread the training to additional officers. The goal is for the training to make officers and community leaders more effective and improve relationships between the police and public.

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3. Ite *"ni?hrough the program himself while
at the Madison Police Department and found it
transformational. In Pittsbr.rrghk police chief post,
he saw a:r opportu:Tity to translorm atr entire police
department by sharing what he had Iearned. t{e
applied for the job, &ot it, and began serving as chief
ir: Septenrber 2014.
Now after nearly two years, he is about to bring
the training to the departm.:rt on a scale that could
provide a tipping point for organizational chalge.
The departme:'rt will use a $l{$,0()0 grant from The
Heinz fndowmenx to help suppllrt a:hree-step pro-
cess. The first step will be ta hire a trainin6 ceitsultant tc
overhaul ali ofths departmentt raining. That process
also may include visiting departmen:s h other parts of
the country to learn current best praetices.
The second sfep will be to offer a customized ver-
sion nfthe Leadership il Prrlice ()rganizirtions'core
curriculum, which is designed to tre taught ir three
one-rveek seslions io three months. (lhief Mclay'"s grxt
here is to have 70 or rnore ollicers corrtplete th{t train-
ilg. He has stacked the deck in favor of the cusk)mi2rd
raining'"r in:pact by haviug nearly S$ otlcers trained
eady on by st*ff instruckrrs frcx :he Internatir:nal
Association of Chiefs of Police, givir:g him "chan3e
agents to help me witl nrovin6 thr crganiration
forward."
The third step will be to have a liroup of nlEcers
complete the train-the-trainer program and then train
75 other officers in the core curriculum within the
following year, Achieving the second and third goals
will make a significart portion of the force, which now
n:rmbers about 840, into change agents.
"The goal is to teach ethical decision-making as
:he predominant decision-making model within the
organization," Chief Mclay said. "You can t exercise
jr:dgment and problem-soh'ing skills in a cornplex
universe by operating offa rule book."
Crant Oliphant, presider:t of the Endorvments,
said &at the direction in which the chief wanrs to take
the police departmert lires up rvith the lnd*wments'
ow:r er:rerging goal a:eas of sustai:rabiliry creativitl
and learning, which will form the basis for consideriag
future grant requests.
For irstarce, the broad goal of leaming "really is
about helping adults lear:r skills that will make them
nrore effective in helping the bn:ader cornmr.rnity," lvfu'.
Clliphant said.
()le member of thrrt broader cornmuni:y who
will be keepi:rg a watchful eye on the departnrent is
Ilrandi S. Fisher, presidelt and tlltl ofthe Aliiance for

4. S"
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LL- --.rd
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Police Accountabilitl'. The or€lanization grcl{ out r,f
citizen response kr thc beating of high .schnnl strdcnt
Iordan lr{iles by undercover police officcrs in J0 10.
"I'm happy that Thc I'leinz Ent'lowme r:ts is ruilling
to financially support tht- idea of f pclire havingl
tre$er ceimmunitv rclations and better cnmmunity
engigement," N,ls. Fish*r said. "I'm not r fan of
firundations funding organizations to fix themselrcs.
But trecause I know that (lhief lvlclay is sincere irr :his
entleayor, I trust lhis process."
(lhief Mclay not orly wants to help his officr'rs
mgs1er such skitrls to r:rake tlerr more efectir,e; he wanis
to r:ffer simila: trainil:g to comnunity leaders to expar:d
their c*pabilities. I-ie is working io preser.rt a]r rbbreyi-
ated versiorl ofthe Leadership irr Police {}rganizations'
curriculum lo civilials ir: Jul1.-an ambitious under-
taking, but, he believes, an importart one.
"lSithl a lot r:f the social problerns th:L we lace"
&ereL plenty af rao*: for lots of people:o he1p," the
cl:i*f said.
All of this is happeling alongside the rvork of tlre
Nutional lnitiative for ISuilding Conmunitl,'Iiust and
]ustice, a program of th* Department of Homeland
Security designed tc imprave relationships and
irlcreasa trnst between communities a:rd the criminal
iustice systcnr.
Pinsburgh is one of the programt six pilot cities,
and !n that, Chief McLa1. sees the potential for the
impact of his department's ners training to ripple
be1'ond the citl,and treyond the next two years.
"Y*le, UCL{, John fav College, thty're all studying
Ilittsburgh now," he said."We have the opportlnity fur
thr next 20 yeax to have ihe .ountry reading atrout
our citl'."
But his que.stiol for local leaders of every strip€
rr,honr he encounters around Pitt$uryh is, "What do
you warrt them tr: read about us?'"
if the:rerr'training prograrn transforms the cityl
police departn:e1rt in ihe ways the chief hopes it will,
thcse future scholars trom tire different colleges will
read that Pitsburgh found a wa.v to avoid becorning the
next Fergusorl by providilg, as Mr. Oliphant deseribed,
"a polir.:e foree tl'rat treats people with the app:opriatc
respect and dignitv tl'ra: every citizen deserves." h