The Pickett InstituteILJ, together with the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), and National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA), organized the Pickett Institute, a five-day training that aims to build capacity for research-driven community-based strategic planning for criminal justice. Teams of approximately nine people from the state and local criminal justice planning levels in each of the five states of Colorado, Minnesota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas, came to Alexandria, Virginia for the training. The training course covered such topics as assessing community readiness to plan and implement change, planning charters, collaborative models for planning and problem-solving, developing strategies, and implementing, evaluating, and sustaining projects. As well, trainers presented skill-based models, on such topics as visioning, facilitation skills, cultural competency, and using the internet for research. A range of trainers presented modules in an active learning environment that included exercises providing teams with an opportunity to use their skills on real-life project scenarios faced by their states and communities. For purposes of the training, ILJ and the federal agencies produced a comprehensive curriculum that will soon be available for states and local players to use in their own communities.