CALEA Accreditation Programs
Law Enforcement
The Law Enforcement Accreditation Program was the first credentialing program established by CALEA after its founding. It was originally developed to address what was seen as a need to enhance law enforcement as a profession and to improve law enforcement service delivery. That mission continues today through a tiered law enforcement accreditation program. Participating agencies may enroll in either CALEA Law Enforcement Accreditation or CALEA Advanced Law Enforcement Accreditation, without regard to agency size. Agencies may apply for and be awarded Accreditation with Excellence by the Commission as an indication of superlative performance within these accreditation programs.
Additionally, these programs are open to all types of law enforcement agencies, on an international basis. And, these programs provide specific standards to support law enforcement agencies functioning in the college/university environment. They provide a process to systematically conduct an internal review and assessment of the agencies’ policies and procedures, and make adjustments wherever necessary to meet a body of internationally accepted standards.
Since the first CALEA Accreditation Award was granted in 1984, the program has become the primary method for an agency to voluntarily demonstrate their commitment to excellence in law enforcement. The standards upon which the Law Enforcement Accreditation Program is based reflect the current thinking and experience of law enforcement practitioners and researchers. Major law enforcement associations, leading educational and training institutions, governmental agencies, as well as law enforcement executives internationally, acknowledge CALEA's Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies© and its Accreditation Programs as benchmarks for professional law enforcement agencies.
- CALEA Accreditation requires an agency to develop a comprehensive, well-thought-out, uniform set of written directives. This is one of the most successful methods for reaching administrative and operational goals, while also providing direction to personnel.
- CALEA Accreditation standards provide the necessary reports and analyses a CEO needs to make fact-based, informed management decisions.
- CALEA Accreditation requires a preparedness program be put in place—so an agency is ready to address natural or man-made unusual occurrences.
- CALEA Accreditation is a means for developing or improving upon an agency's relationship with the community.
- CALEA Accreditation strengthens an agency's accountability, both within the agency and the community, through a continuum of standards that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.
- Being CALEA Accredited can limit an agency's liability and risk exposure because it demonstrates that internationally recognized standards for law enforcement have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors.
- CALEA Accreditation facilitates an agency's pursuit of professional excellence.
- The California Highway Patrol is the largest law enforcement agency within the United States to obtain CALEA Accreditation.
Public Safety Communications
The CALEA Public Safety Communications Accreditation Program provides a communications center, or the communications unit of a public safety agency, with a process to systemically review and internally assess its operations and procedures. Since the first CALEA Communication Accreditation Award was granted in 1999, the program has become the primary method for a communications agency to voluntarily demonstrate its commitment to excellence. The standards upon which the Public Safety Communications Accreditation Program is based reflect the current thinking and experience of public safety communications executives and accreditation experts. APCO International (Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International, Inc.), the leading communications membership association, was a partner in the development of CALEA's Standards for Public Safety Communications Agencies© and its Accreditation Program. This relationship continues today as APCO recognizes the achievements of CALEA Accredited Public Safety Communications agencies and supports accreditation.
CALEA Accreditation requires the communications center or unit to develop a comprehensive, well thought out uniform set of written directives. This is one of the most successful methods for reaching administrative and operational goals, while also providing direction to personnel.
- CALEA Accreditation standards provide the necessary reports and analyses a CEO needs to make fact-based, informed management decisions.
- CALEA Accreditation requires a preparedness program be put in place—so a communications center is ready to address natural or man-made unusual occurrences.
- CALEA Accreditation is a means for developing or improving upon a communications center's relationship with the community or the agencies it services.
- CALEA Accreditation strengthens an agency's accountability, both within the agency and the community, through a continuum of standards that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.
- Being CALEA Accredited can limit a communications center's liability and risk exposure because it demonstrates that internationally recognized standards for public safety communications have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors.
- CALEA Accreditation facilitates an agency's pursuit of professional excellence.
Public Safety Training Academy
The Public Safety Training Academy Accreditation Program began in 2002. Its purpose is to promote superior public safety training services and recognize professional excellence. The program's standards are derived from the best practices of professional public safety training academies, and do not conflict with any organizations that are recognized training authorities. The standards prescribe "what" academies should be doing, but not "how" they should do it. That decision is left up to each academy and the Chief Executive Officer.
The program standards cover nine topic areas: (1) credentialing; (2) organization; (3) direction and authority; (4) human resources; (5) recruitment, selection, employment, and promotion; (6) instructional systems; (7) training administration; (8) instructors; and (9) students.
The CALEA Accreditation Process is a proven modern management model; once implemented, it presents the CEO, on a continuing basis, with a blueprint that promotes the efficient use of resources and improves service delivery—regardless of the size, type, or geographic location of the academy.
The standards upon which the Public Safety Training Academy Accreditation Program is based reflect the current thinking and experience of training academy practitioners and accreditation experts. CALEA's Standards for Public Safety Training Academies© and its Accreditation Program are seen as benchmarks for today's public safety training programs.
- CALEA Accreditation requires an academy to develop a comprehensive, well thought out, uniform set of written directives. This is one of the most successful methods for reaching administrative and operational goals, while also providing direction to personnel.
- CALEA Accreditation standards provide the necessary reports and analyses a CEO needs to make fact-based, informed management and administrative decisions.
- CALEA Accreditation is a means for developing or improving upon an academy's relationship with the community it serves.
- CALEA Accreditation strengthens an academy's accountability through a continuum of standards that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.
- Being CALEA Accredited can limit an academy's liability and risk exposure because it demonstrates that recognized standards for public safety training academies have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors.
- CALEA Accreditation facilitates an academy's pursuit of professional excellence.
Campus Security
The CALEA Campus Security Accreditation Program is designed for educational campus security agencies or departments that primarily employ non-sworn security officers and identify themselves as a "campus security force."
Eligible campus security agencies are defined as those having legal authority to perform security and public safety related functions in an educational campus-based setting, or those providing security or public safety services whose eligibility is verified by the Commission.
The CALEA Accreditation Process is a proven modern management model; once implemented, it presents the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), on a continuing basis, with a blueprint that promotes the efficient use of resources and improves service delivery - regardless of the size, geographic location, or functional responsibilities of the agency.
The CALEA Campus Security Accreditation Program provides agencies an opportunity to voluntarily demonstrate that they meet an established set of professional standards which:
- Require the agency to develop a comprehensive, well thought out, uniform set of written directives. This is one of the most successful steps for reaching administrative and operational goals, while also providing direction to personnel.
- Provide the necessary reports and analyses a CEO needs to make fact-based, informed management decisions.
- Require a preparedness program be put in place - so an agency is ready to address natural or man-made critical incidents.
- Are a means for developing or improving upon an agency's relationship with the campus community.
- Strengthen the agency's accountability, both within the agency and the campus community, through a continuum of standards that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities.
- Can limit an agency's liability and risk exposure because it demonstrates that internationally recognized standards for campus security have been met, as verified by a team of independent outside CALEA-trained assessors.
- Facilitates an agency's pursuit of professional excellence.
CALEA Assessors
CALEA Assessors are contractual employees who follow the policies and procedures of the Commission. CALEA Assessors must have the ability to evaluate public safety management policies, procedures, practices, and activities. It is important for an assessor to have a firm understanding of modern public safety personnel, administrative, legal, and operational concepts and be able to interact, at a peer level, with the assessed agency CEO and command staff.
While on assignment, CALEA Assessors must exemplify the highest levels of professionalism at all times and foster a non-adversarial climate. The CALEA Philosophy concerning assessments is "accountability with reasonable assistance." As the "eyes and ears" of the Commission, assessors must maintain objectivity and report on the agency's ability to comply with the requisite number of applicable standards.
For every accreditation on-site assessment, one assessor is designated as the team leader. Team leaders must hold a senior level executive or management position in their agency. Team leaders are selected from the assessor pool based on their performance, the recommendations of their past team leaders and assessed agencies, and a CALEA Staff review. Team leader certification requires additional CALEA training, as well as maintaining an active assessor certificate. Re-certification is required every three years for assessor and team leader.
Assessor Qualifications
CALEA maintains a pool of assessors that represents the demographics of the agencies it serves. CALEA Assessors must have:
- A minimum of a baccalaureate degree or equivalent work experience and education.
- Five years of current full-time public safety experience as:
- a first-line supervisor or higher, or
- a high-level administrative experience that requires considerable use of discretion.
- Five years of CALEA accreditation experience.
- The ability to write a high quality professional report.
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is a state law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and roads and streets outside city limits, and can exercise law enforcement powers anywhere within the state. The California Highway Patrol can assist local and county agencies and can patrol major city streets along with local and county law enforcement, state and interstate highways, and is the primary law enforcement agency in rural parts of the state.
A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or to otherwise certify an individual as a law enforcement officer, typically a police officer.
The Federal Reserve Police Department (FRPD) is the law enforcement unit of the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States.
In the U.S. state of Oregon, enforcement of local, state, and federal law on public university property is delegated to a number of security, public safety, and police agencies.
An environmental health officer (EHO) also known as a public health inspector is responsible for carrying out measures for protecting public health, including administering and enforcing legislation related to environmental health and providing support to minimize health and safety hazards. EHOs keep water, food, air, land, facilities, and other environmental factors safe from health hazards, whether biological, chemical, or physical. They also address the related factors that impact behaviors. EHOs assess and control environmental factors that can potentially affect health, to prevent disease and create health-supportive environments. Environmental determinants of health play a major role in a community's overall health and well-being, and thus EHOs are essential in improving population health outcomes and reducing the burden of disease.
The Pennsylvania State Capitol Police is a section of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services providing law enforcement, security and parking enforcement services to the State Capitol Complex in Harrisburg, and at state government office buildings in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Scranton, Pennsylvania. Their jurisdiction is primarily state owned buildings and property on the Capitol Complex. The Capitol Police jurisdiction extends to several state owned buildings throughout the city of Harrisburg and local townships.
The Maryland Transportation Authority Police is the eighth-largest law enforcement agency in the U.S. state of Maryland and is charged with providing law enforcement services on Maryland Transportation Authority highways and facilities throughout the Maryland, in addition to contractual services that are provided at Baltimore–Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, and the Port of Baltimore.
Police departments in the University of California system are charged with providing law enforcement to each of the system's campuses.
The California State University police departments(CSUPD) (known within the California State University system as the Cal State Police or University Police) are the police departments of the California State University system. Their police officers are duly sworn peace officers of the State of California, as established by section 830.2(c) of the California Penal Code. There are a total of 23 campuses in the California State University system, each with their own police department. Each csu' police department has its own chain of command, however some of the policies are system-wide.
The Virginia Tech Police Department (VTPD) is a nationally accredited police department with jurisdiction over Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The departments original accreditation with CALEA was awarded on November 18, 1995 and the department has continued with re-accreditation. In November 2015, the department met "gold standard" and also won CALEA's "Accreditation with Excellence" award.
Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International was founded in 1935. It is the world’s oldest and largest organization of public safety communications professionals and supports the largest U.S. membership base of any public safety association. APCO’s mission is to be a leader in providing public safety communications expertise, professional development, technical assistance, advocacy and outreach to benefit its members and the public.
The St. Louis County Police Department (SLCPD) is the primary and largest law enforcement agency serving St. Louis County in the U.S. state of Missouri. The current Chief of Police is Colonel Kenneth Gregory. According to the Charter of St. Louis County, the county police chief has all of the criminal law enforcement duties of the sheriff of St. Louis County, except for the operation of the St. Louis County Jail, which is handled by the St. Louis County Department of Justice Services (civilian), court bailiff and service of civil process. Court bailiff/civil process duties are provided by a court-appointed sheriff and his employees, none of whom have law enforcement powers.
The New Jersey State Parole Board is a governmental body in the U.S. State of New Jersey that is responsible for assisting offenders to reenter society as law-abiding residents. To improve the safety of the public and the quality of life in New Jersey by administering an innovative parole system that addresses the needs of the community, victims, and offenders through a responsible decision-making process that provides every available opportunity for successful offender reintegration.
The New York State University Police (NYSUP) is the law enforcement agency of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Approximately 600 uniformed officers and investigators, as well as sixty-four chiefs, serve the 29 state college and university campuses throughout the state.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) is a state-wide investigative law enforcement agency within the state of Florida. The department formally coordinates eight boards, councils, and commissions. FDLE's duties, responsibilities, and procedures are mandated through Chapter 943, Florida Statutes, and Chapter 11, Florida Administrative Code. FDLE is headed by a commissioner who reports to the Florida Cabinet, which is composed of the governor, the attorney general, the chief financial officer, and the commissioner of agriculture. The commissioner is appointed to his position by the governor and cabinet and confirmed by the Florida Senate.
The Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy is a law enforcement training facility located in Ashburn, Virginia. It serves 17 agencies in Virginia and Washington, D.C., and is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). It offers training for entry-level police officers, sheriff's deputies, and 9-1-1 dispatchers; as well as advanced training for veteran officers in subjects such as identity theft investigations, leadership, and hostage negotiation.
The Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) is a governmental organization responsible for the ownership and management of low-income housing property in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The organization was founded in 1933, making it the first housing authority in the United States.
The University of Missouri-St. Louis Police Department is the law enforcement agency of the University of Missouri-St. Louis, a public research university located just outside the city of St. Louis, Missouri.
William H. Adcox is the Chief Security Officer for the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and a pioneer of Threat Safety Science in healthcare. He is also the Chief of Police and Chief Security Officer at the University of Texas at Houston Police Department, which is a component of the University of Texas System. He has had a longstanding career as a police officer and Deputy Chief of Police in El Paso, Texas.
