It turns out that the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators is based right here in West Hartford.
Here’s its statement in the wake of the Va. Tech massacre:
IACLEA President Healy’s Statement on Virginia Tech Shootings
Statement of IACLEA President Steven J. Healy
WEST HARTFORD, CT (April 16, 2007)– The shootings at Virginia Tech University today are a horrifying tragedy. On behalf of its 1,000 institutional members representing institutions of higher education in the U.S. and worldwide and its 1,700 professional members, IACLEA extends its deepest condolences to the families of the victims who lost their lives today. To the Virginia Tech University community, IACLEA wishes to offer its sympathy and support in this troubling time.
IACLEA is a professional association that advances the campus safety profession by providing educational resources, advocacy, and professional development programs and services.
Campus public safety departments are charged with the important responsibility to protect the lives of millions of students, faculty, staff, and visitors to our college and university campuses. Campus public safety leaders must constantly examine and strengthen the training they provide to their officers and staff to ensure that they are doing all they can to protect the precious lives entrusted to them. While tragic, this incident can provide an opportunity for campus public safety departments and campus administrators to examine their policies and procedures and, if necessary, to make changes to enhance the protection they provide against acts of violence on our campuses.
While incidents of shootings on college campuses are rare, each life lost is unacceptable and represents a promising future sadly shortened. IACLEA has initiated a number of programs and professional development workshops to assist campus public safety leaders in protecting campuses against acts of violence. Through funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, IACLEA offers a Threat and Risk Assessment tool, a three-day Critical Incident Command class that trains command-level staff in managing incidents involving terrorism and other catastrophic events on campus, and a one-day WMD Awareness class. With these grants, IACLEA has also developed model emergency operations plans and guides for communicating and collaborating with mutual aid partners. With the support from the Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, the National Advisory Board for Campus Public Safety is developing a model for a future National Center for Campus Public Safety. This center will serve as the focal point for policies, practices, and best practices. IACLEA also offers professional development programs on school violence prevention at its Annual Conference and other conferences.
While these training programs are important, campus public safety leaders must continue to work with our campus administrations and policy makers to ensure that adequate policies, training programs, and resources are in place to prevent violence on our campuses.
IACLEA stands ready to work with all campus public safety constituents to prevent the kind of senseless acts of violence we have witnessed today.
Media Contact:
Christopher G. Blake, Associate Director
860.586.7517, ext. 565 –info@iaclea.org
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