The mission of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing is to advance the concept and practice of problem-oriented policing in open and democratic societies. It does so by making readily accessible information about ways in which police can more effectively address specific crime and disorder problems.
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing is a non-profit organization comprising affiliated police practitioners, researchers, and universities dedicated to the advancement of problem-oriented policing.
Since the publication of the first POP Guide in 2001 over 900,000 copies of the POP guides and other POP Center publications have been distributed by the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) to individuals and agencies throughout the world. POP Center materials are also widely used in police training and college courses.
Launched in 2003 the POP Center web site has provided innovative learning experiences, curriculum guides, teaching aids, problem analysis tools, and an immense range of information to its users. Among the many ongoing accomplishments of the POP Center web site are:
The POP Center web site was awarded the 2005 APEX Grand Award for Publication Excellence in Web & Intranet Sites. Wrote the judges: "Superbly researched and written reports clearly convey useful, actionable information in this easily-navigable, well-designed site." 
Michael S. Scott is the director of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing, Inc.. He was formerly clinical professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School; chief of police in Lauderhill, Florida; served in various civilian administrative positions in the St. Louis Metropolitan, Ft. Pierce, Florida, and New York City police departments; senior researcher at the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF); and a police officer in the Madison, Wisconsin, Police Department. He is the chairperson for the Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing. He was the 1996 recipient of PERF's Gary P. Hayes Award for innovation and leadership in policing. Scott holds a law degree from Harvard Law School and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Ronald V. Clarke is a University Professor at the School of Criminal Justice, Rutgers University. He previously headed the British government's criminological research department, where he had a significant role in developing situational crime prevention and the British Crime Survey. Clarke is the founding editor of Crime Prevention Studies, and his publications include Designing Out Crime (HMSO 1980, with Pat Mayhew), The Reasoning Criminal (Springer-Verlag 1986, with Derek Cornish), Situational Crime Prevention: Successful Case Studies (Criminal Justice Press, 1997), Superhighway Robbery (Willan Publishing, 2003, with Graeme Newman) Crime Analysis for Problem Solvers (US Dept of Justice, 2005, with John Eck) and Outsmarting the Terrorists (Praeger 2006, with Graeme Newman). He has chaired the selection committee for the annual Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing. Clarke holds a doctorate in psychology from the University of London.
The School of Criminal Justice at Rutgers University-Newark is the academic home of one of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing’s associate directors, Professor Ron Clarke. The Criminal Justice library there, under the direction of Phyllis Schultze, compiles most of the research literature used for the Problem-Oriented Guides for Police. Graduate students there also serve as research assistants to the POP Center.
Graeme R. Newman is distinguished teaching professor at the School of Criminal Justice, University at Albany. He has published works in the fields of the history and philosophy of punishment, comparative criminal justice, private security, situational crime prevention, e-commerce crime, and has written commercial software. He was CEO of a publishing company for 15 years and in 1990 established the United Nations Crime and Justice Information Network. Among the books he has written or edited are: Superhighway Robbery: Crime Prevention and E-commerce Crime (with Ronald V. Clarke) and Rational Choice and Situational Crime Prevention (with Ronald V. Clarke and Shlomo Shoham). Professor Newman received his B.A. from the University of Melbourne in Australia and his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania.
The University at Albany’s School of Criminal Justice is the academic home for one of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing’s associate directors, Professor Graeme Newman. Graduate students there also serve as research assistants to the POP Center. Design and programming work for the POP Center website is done mainly by staff at the Professional Development Program at the University at Albany.
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing was established in 1999 with funding from the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, U.S. Department of Justice, which supported the center through to the end of 2013. Hosting of the web site is currently supported by funding from The School of Criminal Justice, University at Albany, State University of New York.
The opinions contained herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the Center for Problem Oriented Policing or the University at Albany. References to specific agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an endorsement by the authors, the Center for Problem Oriented Policing or University at Albany.
