When the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) recognized the need for an online training solution to complement its established, national in-person training programs, they turned to NCPI for help.
Over a period of 18 months, NCPI, NASRO staff, and subject-matter experts collaborated to design and develop the web-based course: An Introduction to SRO Programs. Since launching, the course has reached more than 3186 individuals representing 1357 organizations and communities throughout the United States.
Aligning missions and a commitment to quality
NASRO is a non-profit organization dedicated to making schools and children safer by providing the highest quality training to school-based law enforcement officers. They deliver a range of in-person courses and services to prepare SROs, school security officers and other school-based professionals to meet the ever-evolving safety and violence prevention needs of school communities.
Because of our experience and recognition for producing quality programs, NCPI is often called upon by our industry partners like NASRO, especially when they need a web-based learning product or resource to deliver their research, content, and training to the field.
Combining decades of experience and expertise
Together with NASRO’s subject-matter expertise and NCPI’s instructional design processes for web-based curriculum, we were able to create a program that maximizes NASRO’s ability to impact SROs and school communities nationwide.
NCPI has been creating and administering technology-enhanced, blended-learning training programs designed for web-based delivery for about two decades. We were one of the first organizations in the public safety training industry to develop web-based curriculum, interactive resources, and online learning management platforms, while also continuing to develop and deliver in-person training solutions.
Customizing content to reflect organizational priorities
At the beginning of the partnership, NCPI worked closely with NASRO and their subject matter experts to understand the organization’s unique voice and needs, and to establish the goals for the web-based course. The purpose of the online course is to complement, not replace, NASRO’s established, national in-person training programs.
NCPI implemented our phased eLearning design and development methodology to create an interactive, technology-enhanced, web-based training program for NASRO. Throughout the process, our teams communicated and collaborated regularly to ensure that the final learning product met all of NASRO’s needs.
Training that SROs can apply to their work
A key component of any educational content NCPI develops is that it must be relevant and applicable to a public safety practitioner’s role in the community. An Introduction to SRO Programs is no exception.
Highlighting the unique roles and responsibilities of SROs, the training explores the benefits and challenges of SRO programs, including stakeholder concerns, and provides practical guidance on best practices that support effective use of SROs in our nation’s schools.
The course features a series of realistic, school-based scenarios with original video content of NASRO’s subject matter experts providing real-world perspective to reinforce learning objectives. On-screen text, videos and narration in a user-friendly eLearning environment allow participants to start, stop and resume the training based on their schedules.