The cops hiring program (CHP) provides funding to law enforcement agencies to hire and/or rehire additional career law enforcement officers in an effort to increase their community policing capacity…

The City of Alma, Arkansas was awarded a $125,000 grant under the U.S. Department of Justice's Public Safety Partnership and Community Policing Grants (CFDA 16.710) program. The grant, awarded in October 2024, is intended to enhance the Alma Police Department's community policing capacity through hiring, training, and strategic improvements. The program aims to promote collaborative partnerships between law enforcement and community stakeholders, improve officer de-escalation and crisis response capabilities, and implement innovative approaches to crime prevention. This grant award builds on a previous $29,340 grant received by the city in October 2023, which focused on advancing law enforcement training in de-escalation, implicit bias awareness, and duty-to-intervene techniques, including the integration of virtual reality training systems. The city has also received sub-awards, such as a project in September 2022 in partnership with the Arkansas Department of Human Services, which involved constructing a 1,025 square foot addition to the Alma Senior Center, including a new kitchen and equipment.

The cops hiring program (CHP) provides funding to law enforcement agencies to hire and/or rehire additional career law enforcement officers in an effort to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts. Anticipated outcomes of CHP awards include engagement in planned community partnerships, implementation of projects to analyze and assess problems, implementation of changes to personnel and agency management in support of community policing, and increased capacity of agency to engage in community policing activities.