Jim Burch is the President of the National Policing Institute, overseeing the Foundation’s efforts to advance policing through innovations in practice and technology.

Jim Burch joined the National Policing Institute in early 2015, serving as the Foundation’s Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Executive Vice President, overseeing the Foundation’s U.S.-based and International efforts to advance policing through the Foundation’s strategic programs, including research projects and training and technical assistance portfolios. Mr. Burch has initiated and led the Foundation’s efforts to identify and promote innovations in policing, including emerging technologies and policy alternatives. As a result of these efforts and others, the Foundation’s organizational capacity and public and private revenues have increased substantially each year, with overall funding revenues more than doubling from 2014 to 2018. During a short tenure as Interim President, Mr. Burch worked together with NPI staff to identify more than $2 million in overall cost savings initiatives, achieved the highest GuideStar Charity Rating of “Platinum”, and was awarded funding for a major enhancement of the NPI’s policing initiatives in Latin America. As a result of these accomplishments, the Foundation has vastly expanded engagement with federal, state and local law enforcement and policymakers and with communities across the Nation, further enabling the Foundation’s mission of advancing policing through innovation and science.

Mr. Burch formerly served for more than 20 years at the U.S. Department of Justice, having been appointed to various senior executive and leadership positions. As Acting Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance from 2009-2011, Mr. Burch oversaw the Department of Justice’s largest agencies designed to support state and local law enforcement in the U.S., with a budget exceeding $500 million annually. As Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) from 2011 through 2013, Mr. Burch served as the highest-ranking civilian in DOJ’s research and funding arm, overseeing all agency operations and management, interfacing with Congress and with Cabinet-level Officials across DOJ and the federal government. As Acting Assistant Director at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from 2014 to 2015, Mr. Burch had responsibility for overseeing ATF’s Public and Governmental Affairs Directorate, including ATF’s Congressional Affairs, Public Affairs, Inter-Governmental Affairs and public records activities. During his federal career, Mr. Burch spearheaded many efforts to advance federal criminal justice and homeland security policy and programs and initiatives designed to support and assist state and local law enforcement. Mr. Burch worked closely with other components of the U.S. Department of Justice during his career, including the Civil Rights Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, among others.

Mr. Burch earned a Master of Science Degree in Administration from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland at College Park. Mr. Burch also serves as a Senior Fellow in the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University, where he was also inducted into the Evidence-Based Policing Hall of Fame in 2015.

Mr. Burch also serves on the Board of Directors for multiple national organizations, including the National Law Enforcement Officers’ Memorial Fund, the National Public Safety GIS Foundation, and Street Law, Inc., a program dedicated to educating young people about law and government.