Full Notification

(Arlington, TX.) – The Arlington Police Department is pursuing accreditation status for the Training Academy, a first attempt at achieving accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA). The academy’s on-site assessment will occur Jan. 9 - 12, 2010. A team of out-of-state assessors will be sent by CALEA to verify compliance with the CALEA Standards. Verification by the team will show that Arlington meets the highest standards in law enforcement training.

As part of the on-site assessment, agency employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments during a public call-in session Monday, Jan. 11, 2010, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at (817) 429-7042; or by mail any time to the CALEA office located at 10302 Eaton Place Suite 100, Fairfax, Virginia 22030-2201.

Telephone comments are limited to 10 minutes and must address the police academy’s ability to comply with the CALEA standards.

The CALEA Accreditation Team arriving in Arlington will consist of Ms. Marilyn Stieneke of North Carolina State University (Raleigh, North Carolina) and Deputy Chief Douglas Middleton of the Henrico County Police Department (Henrico, Virginia).

If the Training Academy is accredited, the Arlington Police Department will receive the CALEA Tri-Arc Award. The Tri-Arc Award is given to the governing bodies and agencies that have concurrent CALEA accreditation for their law enforcement, public safety communications and public safety training agencies. The police agency and communications division are both presently accredited through CALEA.

The Arlington Police Department was first accredited by CALEA in November 1989 and has continued to be re-accredited regularly, most recently in August 2008. If the Training Academy is successfully accredited, the Arlington Police Department will be one of only five agencies in the country who have received this honor.

After initial accreditation, the Arlington Police Department Academy will continue a three-year cycle, and annual reports will be submitted to CALEA attesting continued compliance with standards. For more information, contact the Arlington Police Department Academy or the CALEA office at the above address.