Scheer Earns Recognition from International Association of Chiefs of Police

Thu, 08/22/2019 - 02:19pm | By: David Tisdale

Dr. Charles Scheer, an assistant professor in The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) School of Criminal Justice, Forensic Science and Security, has been selected as a joint recipient, along with the Gulfport (Mississippi) Police Department, of the 2019 International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Leadership in Law Enforcement Research Award for innovative work with police agencies. Scheer and the Gulfport Police Department will be recognized at a ceremony this fall in Chicago.  

Dr. Scheer’s current research program focuses on the areas of leadership and management in policing, working to involve community partners, including with the Gulfport Police Department, which continues to yield impressive outcomes for the School and the law enforcement community, said Dr. Lisa Nored, director of the school.  

“Strong bonds between law enforcement and research partners are incredibly important in our discipline, and we remain grateful to Dr. Scheer for his hard work to identify, develop and maintain these relationships which provide ongoing opportunities for our faculty, staff and students,” said Dr. Nored. “His work has received national and now international attention, and certainly raises the profile of USM and our school.”

Dr. Scheer’s expertise includes police workforce management, training, and police legitimacy, and he has publications on police recruitment and retention strategies, civil liability, and a national assessment of potential police recruit attitudes towards police careers. He has also directed a research project on first-line supervisor leadership training programs from a national sample, has spoken at many peer-reviewed academic and professional conferences, and remains a part-time sheriff’s deputy in Mississippi.

“This was absolutely a team effort between our university and the Gulfport Police Department, as many of our alumni are its command staff and officers,” Dr. Scheer said. “The award is for the establishment of research-practitioner partnerships, which both the school and the police department have worked hard to develop, sustain and transform for many years.”

For information about the USM School of Criminal Justice, Forensic Science and Security, visit https://www.usm.edu/criminal-justice-forensic-science-security/index.php.