PROVIDENCE — The city Police Department, it was announced Monday, will be one of six to lead a network of departments that intend to nationally replicate the use of two comprehensive strategies to combat severe violence and drug peddling.

The strategies involve a variety of tactics, including the diversion of nonviolent drug offenders to education and constructive employment and the targeting of violent offenders who commit a disproportionate share of crime.

In Providence, the former strategy was initially called the High Point Initiative, but after its use in the vicinity of the Lockwood Plaza housing complex in South Providence in 2006, the local police dubbed it the Lockwood Initiative.

Its goal was to conclusively do away with brazen open-air drug peddling in that neighborhood, and it has been deemed a success both by the local police and the academic who conceived it, Douglas Kennedy, director of the Center on Crime Prevention and Control at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. Drug crime has been slashed by 80 percent in that area, according to Kennedy.

The latter strategy regarding violent offenders was initiated in Boston as Project Ceasefire. One of the places to replicate Ceasefire was Cincinnati, whose mayor, Mark Mallory, sang its praises. He said that homicides within groups — gangs, drug crews and clots of neighborhood toughs — were slashed by 40 percent in 17 months.

Announced Monday at the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the coalition in which Providence is to be a leader is called the National Network for Safe Communities.

Leading with Providence will be the departments in Boston, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and High Point, N.C. Members of the six departments in effect will serve as teachers to assist departments and cooperating agencies in other cities in picking up and effectively implementing the strategies. At least 28 other departments are signed up so far to participate.

The network has been launched by John Jay College. Jeremy Travis, president of John Jay and co-chairman of the network, said the strategies have been proved effective and now it is time to sustain them and disseminate them.

The network was announced at a news conference led by Travis at the Rhode Island Convention Center.

gsmith@projo.com