The Bristol Community College Police Department will be assessed by The Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MPAC) for Initial Accreditation on February 5 to 7, 2024.
The Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MPAC) is a state organization which oversees the voluntary certification and accreditation of Massachusetts Police Departments. Accreditation is a self-initiated process by which police agencies voluntarily strive to meet and maintain standards that have been established for the law enforcement profession by the profession.
The process begins with a thorough self-examination by the agency to determine its compliance with program standards. The “self-assessment,” or the internal review initiated by the agency’s chief executive officer, is followed by an external peer review by commission-appointed assessors.
The Commission grants two awards: Certification and Accreditation. Certification includes one hundred seventy-eight mandatory standards. Accreditation is comprised of mandatory and optional standards. All the Certification standards are mandatory standards for Accreditation. An additional ninety-six mandatory Accreditation standards are required, as well as sixty-six Accreditation optional standards. A total of three hundred forty standards must be met to achieve Accreditation.
Achieving Certification or Accreditation means that the agency has agreed to adopt the program’s standards as a way of doing business. Being a Certified or Accredited agency shows:
· The agency is committed to meeting professional standards.
· The agency is willing to be assessed on a regularly scheduled basis by Commission-appointed assessors to confirm compliance with professional standards; and
· The agency agrees to correct any deficiencies discovered during the assessment process to establish or re-establish compliance with program standards