Howell Township Police Corporal Pioneers L.E.A.D. Community Prevention Officer Program

Cpl. Jayme Higgins builds an evidence-based youth vaping prevention initiative through the CPO program’s inaugural class

Participants in L.E.A.D.’s inaugural Community Prevention Officer (CPO) pilot program, including Cpl. Jayme Higgins, standing, right, discussed the outcomes of their community prevention initiatives during a panel presentation at the 21st Century Drug & Violence Prevention Training Conference on June 3 at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City. (Photo Courtesy L.E.A.D.)

HOWELL TOWNSHIP, N.J. — Cpl. Jayme Higgins of the Howell Township Police Department is one of the nation’s first officers to complete the L.E.A.D. Community Prevention Officer (CPO) program, helping pioneer an evidence-based approach to drug and violence prevention while building a youth vaping prevention initiative tailored to the Howell Township community’s needs.

Cpl. Higgins was among 12 officers from eight states selected for the CPO program’s first class. Following months of virtual and in-depth training in prevention science, strategic planning, and evidence-based practices conducted in partnership with Applied Prevention Science International (APSI), each officer assessed local community needs, developed a prevention initiative designed to produce measurable outcomes, and presented the project during the L.E.A.D. (Law Enforcement Against Drugs & Violence) National Training Conference in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

L.E.A.D. created the CPO program to extend prevention efforts beyond the classroom by training officers to identify local risk factors, build partnerships throughout their communities, and implement prevention strategies that can be evaluated and refined over time. L.E.A.D. plans to expand the program nationwide as more officers become certified CPOs.

“Through the CPO program, we support officers working directly with the community to help them make their community safer,” said Nick Loizzi Jr., L.E.A.D. Vice President of Programs and CPO Coordinator.

Dr. Zili Sloboda, founder and president of APSI and a longtime member of L.E.A.D.’s board of directors, said the program introduces law enforcement to prevention science and helps officers develop community-based initiatives rooted in research rather than intuition.

“The role of the Community Prevention Officer is to expand this information to the community,” Dr. Sloboda said. “We’re hoping to have Community Prevention Officers get to know the community, recognize what’s going on and identify where the gaps are.”

For Cpl. Higgins, that meant addressing youth vaping by bringing together schools, law enforcement, public health professionals, and other community stakeholders around a common prevention strategy.

Drawing on the prevention science principles taught through the L.E.A.D. CPO program, Cpl. Higgins developed a comprehensive initiative that combines evidence-based classroom instruction, parent outreach, public awareness campaigns, community partnerships, and ongoing data collection to reduce youth nicotine and THC vaping while measuring the program’s effectiveness over time.

“We’re all working toward the same goal,” Cpl. Higgins said. “When we look at what each group is doing, it helps us realize what our problem was to start with, what we’ve been doing to address it and whether we’ve actually made a difference.”

L.E.A.D. Executive Director and CEO Nick DeMauro praised Cpl. Higgins for demonstrating how prevention science can unite community partners around a shared goal of protecting young people.

“Cpl. Higgins exemplifies exactly what the L.E.A.D. Community Prevention Officer program was created to accomplish,” DeMauro said. “By combining prevention science with strong community partnerships, he is developing solutions that address the unique needs of his community while helping demonstrate how this program can strengthen prevention efforts nationwide.”

To learn more about L.E.A.D.’s mission to keep young people safe from drugs and violence, visit LEADrugs.org. To support programs like the Community Prevention Officer program, visit LEADrugs.org/donate.

About L.E.A.D.

L.E.A.D. (Law Enforcement Against Drugs & Violence) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered in Allentown, N.J., dedicated to equipping law enforcement agencies with the resources, training, and curriculum to deliver effective drug and violence prevention education in schools and communities nationwide. L.E.A.D. supports more than 6,500 certified instructors, who reach more than one million students in more than 2,500 school systems through the Botvin LifeSkills® Training curriculum. L.E.A.D. is funded through donations and grants. For more information, visit LEADrugs.org or call 609-259-2500.

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