By Candie Beck thecabin.net Copyright 2011 The Cabin. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Officials with the University of Central Arkansas have announced they will be working with the Criminal Justice Institute to provide law enforcement officers with the opportunity to combine specialized and supervisory courses beginning in the spring of 2012.

The two specialized tracks that are open only to law enforcement officers are law enforcement administration and crime scene investigation. Officers taking these classes will be able to obtain certificates of proficiency, technical certificates and associate of applied science degrees with general education classes.

In providing this opportunity, UCA will join about 20 other two- and four-year colleges already participating in the program. 

Larry James, UCA police chief, said he is pleased that UCA will be offering this opportunity to law enforcement officers in the community.

“I’m particularly grateful to Dean (Pat) Cantrell, who stepped up and offered to house this program within the College of Business,” he said. “I have always encouraged law enforcement officers who are looking to position themselves for career advancement to earn degrees in business or public administration.”

To participate in the program, the officers will have to go through the process of applying and being accepted to UCA. After they are accepted, the officers can choose to take classes through the CJI, which UCA will transcript at no charge to the officer. Normal UCA tuition and fees will apply to officers enrolled in the required general education classes, which consists of up to 27 hours of coursework.

Conway Police Chief A.J. Gary said he believes providing officers with the option to take continued education classes locally is a benefit to the community.

“The collaboration between the Criminal Justice Institute and UCA is a great opportunity for officers to complete or start working toward a degree,” Gary said. “Here at the Conway Police Department we believe continued education is important. UCA and CJI are both outstanding organizations and this venture is a benefit to law enforcement and our community.”

James said he believes providing the classes locally will benefit many officers who sometimes struggle to find the time in their schedules to take classes. Prior to the classes being offered in Conway, law enforcement officers have had to drive to Little Rock and other areas to complete their coursework.

“Here in Arkansas, we are extremely fortunate to have the Criminal Justice Institute where law enforcement agencies can enroll officers in quality law enforcement education and training courses free of charge and at accessible locations to enhance job performance,” James said. “Credit for these courses which are taken on duty can be applied to general education courses taken at UCA during the day or evening, which reduces shift conflicts and jump starts an officer’s higher education experience at a fraction of the regular cost.”

For more information about the higher education certificate and degree programs, contact Dr. Mike Casey at mcasey@uca.edu or (501) 450-5348.

(Candie Beck is a staff writer and can be reached at 505-1238 or at candie.beck@thecabin.net)