Phila. Mayor Cherelle Parker joins Penn faculty to promote new master's program in applied criminology

2016 Fels Institute of Government graduate and Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker joined Interim School of Arts and Sciences Dean Jeffrey Kallberg on Wednesday to announce the launch of Penn’s new master's program in applied criminology and police leadership. 

The two-year program, housed in the College of Liberal and Professional Studies, was developed by the University’s Department of Criminology and is designed for police officers in senior-level positions. During the May 21 event, Kallberg and Parker celebrated a $2.55 million donation from the Neubauer Family Foundation that will cover tuition costs for officers who have served in the Philadelphia Police Department for at least 5 years.

“We are delighted to partner with the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia Police Department,” program founder Joseph Neubauer said regarding the donation. “We believe this first-of-its-kind MCPL program will equip executives with the advanced tools needed to address critical challenges in public safety, recruitment, retention, and public trust.” 

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, Penn Deputy Provost Beth Winklestein, and Penn professor of criminology John MacDonald joined Kallberg and Parker in the McNeil building for the event. 

“This program is not just about professional development,” Bethel said during the press conference. “It's about preparing leaders to meet the challenges with skill, with empathy, and based [on] a vision for what we want in this police department.” 

Parker noted Bethel’s commitment to policing based on "good data," which she emphasized as part of the MCPL program. She highlighted Bethel's use of "evidence and not instinct to guide change, to build community partnerships, and to deliver real results.”

Parker also used the press conference as an opportunity to "publicly affirm that the University of Pennsylvania is by far one of the most valuable treasures here in the city of Philadelphia."

She described "a shared interest that connects Penn [and] the Parker administration," along with the city's police department.

The graduate program is set to begin in the fall of 2025. The first of its kind in the United States, the program is designed so that officers can complete their degree while working full-time. Weekly synchronous online classes and monthly in-person classes will be offered on Fridays and Saturdays, along with a one-week boot camp during the summer.

The program will feature a variety of classes, including “Data Analysis and Program Evaluation,” “Evidence-Based Policing,” “Leadership in Criminal Justice,” and “Implementing Experiments Into Policing.”

MacDonald, who helped design the classes, said that "the MCPL program will teach current and aspiring police leaders to make decisions based on scientific evidence and time-tested management principles” at the event.

MacDonald also noted that “fair, constitutional, and community-centered” policing approaches build "public trust" and "advance procedural justice."

“This partnership creates an important bridge between our faculty's research excellence and the real-world challenges of public safety leadership,” Kallberg said. 

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