Franklin Awarded Criminal Justice Funding

Contact:

Sherry Mercurio
Executive Director, Office of Community Relations
(614) 947-6581
Email: sherry.mercurio@franklin.edu

Franklin University, a leading educator of working adults, is pleased to announce the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s (ODPS) Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS) has awarded Franklin University criminal justice funding to deploy its “Every Officer is a Leader” course.

Franklin is honored to receive the Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG), which allows local and state governments to support a broad range of activities. Funding helps support prevention, as well as controls crime, based on the needs and conditions of the jurisdictions and supports multijurisdictional drug task forces, school resource officers, drug, veteran and mental health courts, corrections projects, and justice technology initiatives in Ohio.

“These grants provide critical resources to our local government and nonprofit partners, which allow them the flexibility to use the funds in ways that best support their efforts to prevent and reduce crime and violence and serve the needs of survivors using a community-coordinated approach,” said OCJS executive director, Karhlton Moore.

Franklin has laid the groundwork for its “Every Officer is a Leader” course, under the direction of project director, Dr. Jonathan McCombs, dean of the College of Health and Public Administration at Franklin University and executive director of the Center for Public Safety & Cybersecurity Education, and co-director, Sean Asbury, CLEE, Chief of Police, Columbus State Community College. The $15,075 grant will help construct the 10 week police training course that focuses on leadership skills for line officers.

The “Every Officer is a Leader” course was originally piloted in 2017, when Franklin University and Columbus State Community College partnered with several local law enforcement agencies to test the feasibility of online law enforcement in-service training. Participants of the course discussed foundational leadership truths, received tools that focused on success, and demonstrated strategies that inspire ongoing leadership development.

Through today’s announcement, funding from the Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program will allow Franklin and its partners to expand access to this course to several dozen more line officers from law enforcement agencies in Central Ohio. 

As Franklin continues to help equip surrounding communities with the skillsets to take on unprecedented criminal justice challenges, the University also offers a M.A. in Criminal Justice Administration program, as a comprehensive understanding of the criminal justice system: https://www.franklin.edu/degrees/masters/criminal-justice-administration

Formal news release - Ohio Awards Millions in Criminal Justice Funding to Local Agencies: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/OHOCJS/bulletins/2ae53c1

About Franklin University

Accredited, nonprofit, and dedicated to educating adults since 1902, Franklin provides onsite course options at our Main Campus in downtown Columbus, Ohio, and is an innovator in providing personalized online education. The University offers applied in-demand undergraduate, masters, and doctorate programs that enable adult learners to achieve their educational and professional goals. Through agreements with partner institutions, the University also offers international academic programs, including its top-ranked MBA.

Franklin University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and holds specialized accreditations for specific academic programs through the International Accreditation Council for Business Education, the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, and the Commission on Accreditation of Health Informatics and Information Management Education. The National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security have designated Franklin University as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE).