The United States Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and Rural Law Enforcement Technology Center (RULEC) conducted the Small and Rural Law Enforcement Summit in Tulsa, Oklahoma, August 4-6, 2009. The Summit targeted small or rural law enforcement agencies with less than 50 sworn officers.

The purposes of the Summit were to educate the attendees on the resources and technical assistance available from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), obtain input from the practitioners on HIJ research priorities, identify the major problems facing small and rural agencies, conduct a training needs assessments, and collect information for the completion of a report that can help guide funding a research for these unique agencies.

Sheriff Chinn of the Pratt County Sheriff's Office participated with approximately fifty chiefs and sheriffs from forty states, in this informative and innovative even. Some topics of discussion were communications, recruiting quality officers, records/dispatch issues, less lethal technologies, funding, forensics, and numerous other items. Sheriff Chinn stated that the most beneficial part of the Summit was the interaction with their contemporaries. "I found that other departments are facing the same issues that we encounter and that there are some solutions out there. It was also refreshing to know that NIJ and RULETC wanted input from the practitioners on what we needed to do our job."

The Summit was funded by NIJ in a cooperative agreement with RULETC which managed the event. There was no cost to the participants and their agencies. Participants were selected from across the United States primarily due to their recognized roles as leaders in the small and rural law enforcement community.