The Loss Prevention Foundation’s primary mission is to support, nurture and develop the entire loss prevention community. Working with industry leaders, solution providers and the academic community, it is vitally important that we increase awareness, build programs and provide opportunities that foster the growth and development of the loss prevention leadership of tomorrow. But in these challenging times, it is just as critical that we uphold our focus on the loss prevention leaders of today; supporting their efforts and their contributions in any way that we can. That is a commitment that all of us must share as mentors, colleagues, partners and friends. We have to carry the vision and foresight to help those that are just launching their careers, while maintaining the encouragement and fortitude necessary to support those of us that are facing difficult times in a struggling economy.
As we move forward in our efforts to increase the awareness for our profession within the academic community, the Loss Prevention Foundation recently attended the annual conference for the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS), which convened simultaneously with the national conference for the National Criminal Justice Honor Society – Alpha Phi Sigma. In a joint sponsorship with the LossPrevention Magazine, the foundation is proud to announce that 15 scholarships were awarded, valued at $500 each, to students who expressed an interest in loss prevention as a career path. In recognizing academic excellence, students had to maintain at least a 3.2 grade point average in order to qualify. Recipients represented nine different universities:
The foundation spent several days networking with more than 2,000 university professors and students from hundreds of academic programs, driving our national initiative to educate the academic community on the excellent career alternatives that loss prevention offers to traditional criminal justice careers. Clearly, these initiatives are showing tremendous momentum. In fact, the ACJS now has a separate subsection devoted to Security Management/Loss Prevention due to the increased interest and demand! The LossPrevention Magazine also participated in the event, distributing hundreds of magazines while providing free subscriptions and access to the on-line archives to dozens of professors. Special recognition also goes to the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) for providing us with additional information to help promote our profession. This was the second year that the foundation has exhibited at this conference.
LP Executives in Transition
While it is important for us to plan for the future, it is just as critical for us to tend to today. As a means of showing our support to those facing employment transitions, the foundation, in partnership with RILA and the LossPrevention Magazine will also be supporting an LP Executives in Transition event at this year’s RILA Loss Prevention, Auditing and Safety Conference in Orlando May 3–6. Together, we hope to raise money to sponsor unemployed colleagues so that they can attend the event; offering them the opportunity to network and attend workshops. We are also currently developing additional services and assistance for the conference that will be designed to help them survive the transition, find employment and show our support during this challenging time. If you would like to attend the event, or if you are a vendor or other concerned party willing to offer resources or assistance to support this program, please contact Gene Smith at gene.smith@losspreventionfoundation.org. or Paul Jones at Paul.Jones@retail-leaders.org