DOCJT Receives Council on Occupational Education Accreditation
The Department of Criminal Justice Training (DOCJT) has achieved a significant milestone by earning accreditation from the Council on Occupational Education (COE).
Gov. Andy Beshear commended the department for its ongoing efforts to provide exceptional training to Kentucky's law enforcement community while prioritizing the safety of Kentuckians.
"I am proud of our state’s dedication to ensuring the safety of not only our officers, but working to make our streets, communities and nation more secure.” Beshear said. "This accreditation is a step forward in building a new Kentucky where every Kentuckian feels safe and our officers return home at the end of each shift.”
DOCJT Commissioner Nicolai Jilek stated that the accreditation confirms the agency's enthusiasm for offering the best possible law enforcement training to its clients.
“We want to find the highest possible standards and the most stringent accreditation processes and allow those accrediting agencies to hold us accountable,” Jilek said. “We accomplished that goal with COE. This accreditation represents how devoted DOCJT staff are to transparency, purpose, and providing exceptional service to the law enforcement and public safety dispatch communities that rely on us for the best training in the nation.”
The Process
The Atlanta-based COE was founded in 1971, as the Commission on Occupational Education Institutions of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. According to its website, COE serves as a regional accrediting association serving institutions in an 11-state area. Its vision is to "lead and shape the future of career and technical education by fostering excellence, innovation, and integrity.”
Staff Services and Planning Section Supervisor Rachel Lingenfelter explained that this accreditation was the result of extensive effort that began in June 2022, when the agency started researching COE's accreditation process.
This accreditation applies explicitly to DOCJT’s three primary academies – the Certified Court Security Officer Academy, the Public Safety Dispatch Academy, and the Law Enforcement Basic Training Academy.
During the accreditation process, COE assessors were impressed with DOCJT's training environment and facilities, describing them as "very detailed" and "advanced."
“When the assessors visited with us in March, they were very impressed with the type of training we were already providing without having to change a lot,” Lingenfelter said. “I think the few changes we had to make to meet these standards that came from COE just solidify that we are providing the best training across the nation."
In June, the Department of Criminal Justice Training received accreditation through the Atlanta-based Council on Occupational Education. Pictured from left are DOCJT Interim Training Director Amy Hess, Assistant Training Director Chip White, Staff Services and Planning Supervisor Rachel Lingenfelter, Staff Assistant Patrick Miller, COE Assessors Yolanda Flores and Melissa Stephan, Assistant Director Kevin Rader, DOCJT Commissioner Nicolai Jilek, DOCJT Deputy Commissioner Mike Bosse, Resource Management Analyst Stephanie Gilmore and Procedure Development Specialist Amy Robertson. (Photo by Jim Robertson)
The assessors who visited DOCJT's Richmond campus had backgrounds in law enforcement training and understood the field well from the schools where they served.
"With what we were doing here, they said we were leaps and bounds above what they were doing in their programs," Lingenfelter said. "My team and I, as well as the executive staff, are very proud of our training here. And the facilities we have here were beyond what the assessors could imagine."
Lingenfelter and her team prepared a comprehensive 200-page self-study, which had to be completed by the end of December 2023.
"They looked into the accounting processes, the supply processes, the instructional design process, and each of the basic training for certified court security, public safety dispatch, and the law enforcement processes," Lingenfelter said. "The study also included information about the facilities and human resources processes. It included our instructors' qualifications, not just from the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council, but also their educational background."
In June, DOCJT Commissioner Nicolai Jilek was notified that DOCJT met the requirements for accreditation, which will be reviewed every six years.
"COE issues accreditation ranging from two to six years, depending on the quality of our training and our self-study," Lingenfelter said. "From the letter we received, COE liked what we were doing here at DOCJT. We were delighted to receive our six-year accreditation, which is the most we could be granted for reaffirmation."
In the report from COE to DOCJT, the assessors commended DOCJT on its dedicated "lab spaces," such as the Tactical Section, and the upkeep and maintenance of the buildings and grounds.
Work Still to Be Done
Even though DOCJT's reaccreditation process isn't for another six years, Lingenfelter emphasized that the agency will not let its standards fall.
DOCJT is required to submit an annual report for the COE commission to review each year. Additionally, the agency must conduct follow-up surveys for the recruits and students who have graduated from the three academies. These surveys will be distributed to different agencies to ensure that the training provided at DOCJT meets the needs of the recruits and students returning to their agency for work once they graduate.
Lingenfelter mentioned that these surveys will be rolled out by the end of the year.
Additionally, COE requires DOCJT to convene an Occupational Advisory Committee and an Institutional Advisory Committee to meet at least once a year.
"We will meet here on campus and ask them if our students are prepared for when they leave training," Lingenfelter said. "We will also have more meetings to provide information on what DOCJT can offer to our clients, how we can help them, and what they can do to help us."
The COE accreditation is DOCJT’s second such achievement. The agency has been accredited through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies since 2003.
