Case Study: Newport Beach Police Department achieves streamlined volunteer time tracking and recognition with Track it Forward

How this Police Departments gets involved with the Community with Volunteering

Newport Beach Police Department, a small agency with just under 150 officers and roughly 20–30 volunteers, needed a reliable way to track volunteer service to quantify how much volunteering offsets duties normally done by paid staff and to manage recognition. To meet this need, Volunteer Program Coordinator Jennifer Manzella adopted Track it Forward to record hours and duties across multiple submission methods.

Track it Forward was deployed via an embedded code on the volunteer site, direct links, the mobile app and an iPad at the volunteer desk, and its Milestones feature updates in real time so awards can be prepared promptly. The system automates time tracking and approvals, gives volunteers immediate access to their records, and has saved the coordinator significant staff hours; milestone data (e.g., volunteers at 500, 1,000, 2,000 and up to 6,000 hours) also provides the Chief with concrete numbers to demonstrate the program’s community value.

Newport Beach Police Department

Jennifer Manzella

Volunteer Program Coordinator