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Conflict Resolution for Law Enforcement Personnel

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Message from the Chief

As members of the LAPD Family, it is not only important that we have empathy for members of the community, but that we have it for each other. We must treat each other in a way that builds the LAPD you want to belong to.

It is my expectation that you will use the skills, training, and tactics that are taught in this course to create a better workplace. We are all in this together and the results, the future of the LAPD, depends upon what each and every one of us does.

This course has been designed specifically for us, with us - to protect and to serve our LAPD Family. The knowledge you will be gaining from this course comes from the nation's foremost leaders in conflict resolution. We take pride in our ability to de-escalate conflict every working day. With the knowledge gained from this course, we will achieve a better understanding of how to handle conflict in the workplace, naturally enhancing how we serve our community.

- Chief Charlie Beck

Course Information

Description

Sworn personnel at the Los Angeles Police Department are exposed to conflict daily; they are well-versed in handling fluid, dynamic, and life-altering conflict tactically for the preservation of life. Many supervisors report, however, that workplace conflicts at their best are challenging, and at their worst are personally and organizationally destructive. This training is designed to address the tactical and interpersonal skills necessary for supervisors to handle the conflicts that occur in the workplace. Conflict management creates efficiency, effectiveness, increases morale, preserves careers, and protects and serves the LAPD Family.

This interactive four-day course was jointly envisioned by the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, and the Los Angeles Police Department to address the particular needs of LAPD personnel. The curriculum was designed mindful of the law enforcement workplace including the unique environment and harms, the vertical communication patterns of sworn personnel, the increasingly intergenerational workforce, and the dynamic nature of police work. The skills that will be developed include early identification, prevention, de-escalation, and resolution of conflict.

What you will take away

  • An overview of conflict resolution styles and leadership competencies
  • Concentration on the early identification and de-escalation of workplace conflict
  • An in-depth exploration of the skills to successfully manage conflict in the workplace
  • Exposure to problem solving models including supervisor-employee conflict and employee-employee conflict
  • Insight into special topics in conflict resolution including the psychology of conflict, high-conflict personalities, and intergenerational conflict resolution

 Faculty

Pepperdine Caruso School of Law

Stephanie Bell Blondell

Stephanie Blondell is an assistant professor of law and assistant director of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution. She supervises the Mediation Clinic and teaches Mediation Theory and Practice and Criminal Law. Prior to joining Pepperdine, she served as the manager of the King County Alternative Dispute Resolution Program and Inter-Local Conflict Resolution Group, a tri-county labor-management and public policy mediation program in the area around Seattle, Washington. Prior to this she was the alternative dispute resolution coordinator for the City of Seattle where she designed and implemented a labor and employment mediation program for city government. Before joining Straus full-time, Blondell served as an adjunct professor at Straus, the Seattle University School of Law, and the University of Washington master of public administration program. Blondell earned her BA with honors in American civilization from Brown University, and her JD from the University of Washington School of Law.

Peter Robinson

Peter Robinson is the Managing Director of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution and professor of law at Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law. He has presented advanced negotiation and mediation skills courses throughout the United States and in more than ten foreign countries. He has served on the boards of the California Dispute Resolution Council, Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA), Dispute Resolution Services of the LACBA, Ventura Center for Dispute Settlement, and the Christian Conciliation Service of Los Angeles. The SCMA recognized him as Peacemaker of the year in 1999. He is a fellow of the International Academy of Mediators and was recognized as a Southern California Super Lawyer in the area of mediation in 2006 and 2008. After being appointed by the LA City Attorney, he successfully mediated all the environmental objections to building the Farmer's Field football stadium in downtown LA.

Los Angeles Police Department

Arif Alikhan

Arif Alikhan is the Director of the Office of Constitutional Policing and Policy, and is the first civilian three-star command in the LAPD. He is a former federal prosecutor, and has served in several senior Homeland Security, Counterterrorism, and Law Enforcement positions. He has been an adjunct professor of law, and a full-time professor for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Ret. Chief Sandy Jo MacArthur, and other LAPD guest facilitators.

 Location and Time

West Los Angeles Campus (March 29-31, and April 1, 2016)

Pepperdine University Plaza
6100 Center Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90045
Classes are conducted between 7:30 AM and 4:00 PM. Parking at the Pepperdine West Los Angeles facility will be validated.

Hotel Information:

West LA Hotel List

Malibu

Pepperdine University Drescher Conference Center
24255 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90263

Classes are conducted between 7:30 AM and 4:00 PM and will include a continental breakfast and lunch.

Hotel Information:

Malibu Hotel List

 Contact Information

For more information, please call Lori Rushford at 310.506.6342 or email lori.rushford@pepperdine.edu

or call the LAPD's Risk Management Division at 213.486.8730