Western Dakota Technical College (WDTC) strives to prepare its students to be highly-skilled professionals who are career-ready day one upon graduation. Programs seeking national accreditation go through a detailed and lengthy process to ensure the program follows industry protocol, meets specific standards, and offers a quality educational program. Accreditation ensures students enter their career field with the knowledge and skills appropriate to the industry.
WDTC’s Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement Program recently earned the prestigious Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., (CALEA) accreditation.
According to CALEA, the process of CALEA Accreditation begins with a rigorous self-assessment, requiring a review of policies, practices, and processes against internationally accepted public safety standards. It is followed with an assessment by independent assessors with significant public safety experience. Additionally, public feedback is received to promote community trust and engagement, and structured interviews are conducted with select agency personnel and others with knowledge to assess the agency’s effectiveness and overall service delivery capacities. The decision to accredit is rendered by a governing body of twenty-one Commissioners following a public hearing and review of all reporting documentation.
“CALEA Accreditation is a continuous process and serves as the foundation for a successful, well managed, transparent, community-focused public safety agency. To this end, an agency must maintain its accredited status by remaining in compliance with CALEA standards at all times,” said CALEA Executive Director W. Craig Hartley, Jr., in a letter to WDTC Criminal Justice - Law Enforcement Program Director Pete Ragnone. “CALEA congratulates the Western Dakota Technical College for demonstrating a commitment to professional excellence through accreditation.”
WDTC Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement is an 18-month Associate of Applied Science degree program. The mission of the program is to prepare students with the knowledge and skills necessary for employment as entry-level law enforcement officers. It is not a strictly academic program – it has an extensive hands-on component to it with the majority of credits (14) earned in the WDTC Law Enforcement Academy.
“The motto for the CALEA organization is ‘The Gold Standard in Public Safety’ and WDTC’s Criminal Justice - Law Enforcement Program has met this gold standard by earning initial CALEA accreditation,” said Tiffany Howe, WDTC Vice President for Teaching and Learning. “CALEA accreditation is common in the law enforcement industry for individual agencies, but it is not common for law enforcement academic programs. WDTC’s program is one of just a handful of programs across the country to earn this high distinction.”
For more information about WDTC’s Criminal Justice – Law Enforcement program, go to https://www.wdt.edu/degree-programs/law-enforcement/.
PHOTO CUTLINE:
WDTC Criminal Justice Instructor Elias Diaz and Criminal Justice Program Director Pete Ragnone, center, receiving the CALEA Certificate of Accreditation. Far left, CALEA Executive Director W. Craig Hartley, Jr., and far right, CALEA President/Chairperson Marcus Brown.
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About Western Dakota Technical College
Western Dakota Technical College (WDTC) was established in 1968 and is the only technical college serving the western South Dakota region.
WDTC offers more than 40 programs in a variety of fields, including Business and Computers, Construction and Manufacturing, Energy and Environmental Technologies, Health Sciences, Legal and Public Services, and Transportation Technologies.
Ninety-nine percent of Western Dakota Technical College's most recent graduates are working, continuing their education, or are enlisted in the military per the WDTC 2021 Placement Report. There were 326 respondents out of 380 graduates surveyed. [*Placement information is derived from graduate surveys, faculty-collected data, placement surveys started six months after graduation, and the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation. Overall placement rate is figured by: (responding graduates employed, continuing education, or in military service)/(responding graduates who are seeking employment). The number of program graduates are unduplicated by CIP code.]
Western Dakota Technical College faculty, staff, and administration focus their efforts on helping students gain the skills and experiences they need to succeed. Through hands-on learning, internships, and industry partnerships, Western Dakota Tech students graduate ready to make a real and immediate contribution to their employers and to their communities.
For information about WDTC, call (800) 544-8765 or (605) 718-2565 or send an email to Admissions@wdt.edu. Visit us on the web at wdt.edu.
