The Museum will serve as a public forum for discussions, lectures and conferences. It will offer a variety of educational programs for school-aged children, adults, families, law enforcement officers and the public.

The Museum's Research Center is an access point for law enforcement history and knowledge. It is a resource for everyone — staff, educators, collectors, historians and police officers alike — to learn more about the history and practice of law enforcement in America.

Materials held by the Museum will be available through an online catalog, accessible from anywhere at any time. This online, searchable database of artifacts, documents, oral histories and more will be available to the public free of charge.

Education and public programs are essential to he National Law Enforcement Museum's mission. Public programs, school and group visits, electronic "field trips," and partnerships and collaborations with other museums and community and educational organizations are all planned.

And before the Museum's doors physically open, its educational programming is already under way. In 2009, the Museum launched a pilot program in partnership with the DC Public Schools, the Metropolitan Police Department and the Center for Civic Education. Now, thanks to a $1.5 million grant from the Verizon Foundation, Museum staff are putting together a multi-faceted educational program focusing on law enforcement, civics, history, math, science and domestic violence prevention.

The Museum's educational program is being developed in collaboration with its Edvisory Committee, a collection of experienced law enforcement officials and educators representing various areas of expertise relevant to program and curriculum content. The Committee helps to ensure that Museum programs present meaningful, relevant and accurate information in a developmentally and culturally appropriate way.