Wednesday, June 17, 2009
2:00 PM - 5:00 PM
This year's conference features several free, practical, hands-on workshops to help you improve the way you do your job. Workshops
are designed for decisionmakers who want to better understand the ways research can help craft effective policies and improve
programs and practices.
Space is limited and once the workshops have been filled, there will be no waiting list.
Evidence-Based Programs: Using Research to Guide Effective Practice
Learn what factors contribute to an effective intervention program. One of the nation’s leading evaluation researchers will
give an overview of methods for developing evidence-based guidelines for such programs. These methods will be illustrated
for programs designed to reduce recidivism, including “home-grown” interventions, real-world practices, and brand name and
model programs. The instructor will focus on meta-analysis (a technique for combining studies) as a way to integrate evidence.
Instructor: Mark W. Lipsey, Ph.D., is Director of the Peabody Research Institute and a Research Professor at Vanderbilt University.
Get Funded: Developing a Better Proposal
Increase your chances of being in the 10 percent of applicants who are funded by federal agencies such as the National Institute
of Justice. This workshop will give tips for writing a competitive proposal, completing the numerous forms required in federal
funding, developing a budget, and addressing human subjects research and privacy issues. Instructors will also discuss the
role of an institutional review board and explain data archiving, sound methodology, and the differences between social science
research and technology research. Bring previous consensus reviews for ideas on how to improve your next proposal.
Instructors: NIJ grant managers, former proposal reviewers, and NIJ’s Human Subjects Protection Officer.
Hand-in-Hand: Research and Practice Making a Difference Together
Action research is collaborative, strategic problem solving that targets specific crime problems within communities. In several
locations, civic leaders and researchers working together have found that action research can help them reduce problems related
to drugs, firearms and gangs. This workshop will discuss the basic philosophy behind action research and the processes involved.
You will learn from practitioners experienced in establishing an effective partnership, pinpointing the core of their crime
problems, and building effective strategies to combat crime and deal with challenges along the way.
Instructors: Researchers and law enforcement executives who have reduced crime through successful collaboration.
How Multi-Jurisdictional Task Forces Can Work Better
Learn how to coordinate your resources with other law enforcement agencies, collect data and develop performance measures.
This workshop will explain ways to establish a task force, form partnerships that are cohesive and focused and measure a task
force’s impact so senior officials and citizens can see their tax dollars being used wisely.
Instructors: Leaders who have first-hand experience working with performance measures and task forces.
Recognizing and Handling Digital Evidence
More and more often, law enforcement arrives at a crime scene containing evidence on digital equipment — cell phones, BlackBerries,
smartphones, iPods, thumb drives and laptops. Instructor Robert Leary will describe the typical kinds of evidence found on
such devices. He will also explain how to identify the evidence and handle the devices to ensure that evidence will be admissible
in court. This workshop is primarily for law enforcement officers and prosecutors, but researchers interested in digital crime
and its investigation will likely gain insight from the discussion.
Instructor: Robert O’Leary is President of Electronic Crime Prevention & Investigations, LLC. In 2002, he retired from the New Jersey
State Police High Technology Crimes and Investigations Support Unit, which he and another detective established in 1996.
Date Created: February 19, 2009