Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership (LEPS)

LEPS 500 | CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN LAW ENFORCEMENT AND PUBLIC SAFETY

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

This course examines cutting-edge issues facing law enforcement and public safety including: evolving technology, legal standards regarding use of force, officer health and wellness, UAVs, facial recognition, correctional realignment, drug policy changes, bail reform, records disclosure, and more. These issues are changing the landscape of law enforcement faster than ever before; this course will help law enforcement leaders proactively prepare for their agencies to thrive in this dynamic landscape.

LEPS 501 | NEW STUDENT ORIENTATION

Units: 0 Repeatability: No

This orientation course introduces students to the University of San Diego and provides important information about the program. Throughout the orientation, students will learn to successfully navigate through the online learning environment and locate helpful resources. Students will practice completing tasks in the online learning environment as preparation for success in their online graduate courses. This orientation course will be available to students as a reference tool throughout the entirety of your program.

LEPS 510 | COMMUNICATION SKILLS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LEADERS

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

From interpersonal communication with colleagues and citizens to formal written reports to working with the media, this course studies all of the different ways law enforcement leaders need to communicate to be successful. The course introduces and develops a series of communication skills essential for someone leading a modern law enforcement department.

LEPS 520 | BEST PRACTICES IN COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

This course looks at best practices regarding how individuals in law enforcement engage both broadly with the community and with key stakeholders. This course specifically zeros in on these aspects of communication in the modern climate of increased transparency and collaboration. Building from real case studies, students will complete this course with an understanding of how to appropriately position their agencies in the national dialogue about policing in the contemporary climate, being leaders in a progressing industry, and what it means to be a changemaker in the field of policing.

LEPS 530 | PUBLIC SAFETY LAW IN A DYNAMIC WORLD

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

In an era where evolving technology is outpacing the law, this cutting-edge course helps provide direction and answer questions around the legal complexities of using law enforcement technologies, and other contemporary legal issues. The course looks at right-to-privacy and 4th amendment cases that are guiding legal precedents regarding smartphones, UAVs, BWCs, Brady issues, DNA evidence, cyber crime, terrorism, peace officer records release and transparency legislation. The course features hypothetical scenarios in which students make leadership and mission decisions broaching legal questions where there is no clear correct legal answer.

LEPS 540 | ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

How do law enforcement and public safety professionals lead under stress, in environments of change, and in the modern social and political climate? Strong leadership is crucial in law enforcement organizations; from officer safety, to thriving teams, to organizational success or failure, the stakes are high day in and day out. Leadership is a broad and diverse toolkit that can, and should, be understood and applied differently by individuals and organizations. Throughout this course, students will be exposed to practical and application-based examinations of organizational models and leadership theories. Designed to create immediate payoff with real-time and actionable lessons, the course uses a variety of case studies from law enforcement, corporate America and the military to present a holistic look at leadership, ethics, and best practices in modern law enforcement and public safety organizations.

LEPS 550 | DATA FLUENCY AND ANALYSIS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LEADERS

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

In today’s law enforcement and public safety field, leaders need to be able to justify resource allocation decisions, present data-driven initiatives, and demonstrate success and failure with sound data and evidence. This course nurtures a contemporary and critical understanding of the importance of crime data and related evidence to maximizing both ethics and efficacy within agencies. Honing in on intelligence-led, evidence-based, data-driven policing, students will learn how to effectively present accurate, detailed crime data and related evidence for key stakeholders.

LEPS 560 | EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP IN MODERN PUBLIC SAFETY: THEORY, CONCEPTS, & APPLICATION

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

This course examines best practices for effective and impactful leadership in the dynamic, contemporary world of public safety. Relevant leadership theories will be coupled with real-world case studies from law enforcement, the military, academia, and the private sector to present a well-rounded analysis of the dynamic concept of leadership. The course emphasizes self-reflection, tangible strategies, and practical skill building to nurture immediately applicable leadership proficiencies that will support today’s law enforcement and public safety personnel to thrive in a dynamic and demanding environment.

LEPS 570 | PUBLIC POLICY INNOVATION

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

How do agencies carry out reliable public policy research? Which resources do they invest in and why? Are the programs in place working? How can any given law enforcement leader be an effective, critical consumer of research, evidence, and best practices? This course looks at how to make good policy decisions, how to involve key stakeholders, and how to create and communicate policy. Nurturing practical research skills for law enforcement leaders, students will complete a project in which they are placed in groups to collectively write an MOU for a gang or human trafficking multiagency task force. Working each week to contribute to the document, they produce a real MOU by the end of the course; something typically high ranking individuals and/or those in specialized assignments have the opportunity to do.

LEPS 580 | LAW ENFORCEMENT MANAGEMENT AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

A deep and applicable understanding of emotional intelligence, human resources, and essential skills for managing workplace conflict is key to leading successfully. In this course, students will develop skills that are essential to effective dispute resolution. These skills will be introduced, developed, and applied to conflicts between individuals, within small groups, and throughout organizations. At its core, this is an ethics-centric leadership and management course that addresses the unique dynamics of criminal justice agencies. Navigating contentious issues and developing and executing effective, positive resolutions requires an approach that emphasizes human dignity and both personal and professional integrity throughout the process.

LEPS 590 | BUDGET & FINANCE FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LEADERS

Units: 3 Repeatability: No

Would you know how to create and present a budget if asked to do so? Budget and finance is an area in which many new to a command staff position feel they need additional training. And with the increased emphasis on evidence-driven rationales for budgetary decisions, all law enforcement leaders need to have a robust understanding of budgeting, contract negotiation, finance, and staffing/resource allocation. This course will expose students to different types of budget models and how they function in a public safety environment. Key learning concepts include performance-based, line-item and zero-based budget models, along with best practices for finding, writing and securing grants that are often key to organizational goals.

LEPS 599 | INTEGRATIVE CAPSTONE

Units: 1 Repeatability: No

In the final course of the program sequence, students create an online portfolio to showcase what they’ve learned throughout the program. In what could be described as a ‘resume on steroids’, this portfolio contains a compilation of exemplary projects, term papers, presentations, and skill-based exercises that were completed throughout the program. The creation of the capstone project requires students to identify and critically reflect on the major program themes and what they’ve learned in the program. The reflection and the portfolio itself are both invaluable assets for career advancement.