Roswell Academy Cements International Bonds
Winter/Spring 2006
The chief prosecutor of Namibia... the deputy director of the Hungarian National Police... the head of Brazil's environmental enforcement agency - you probably wouldn't expect to meet such persons in a U.S. government training program.
However, these officials, along with a police general from China, are typical of those who have graduated from the State Department's International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA-R), which SAIC helps operate in Roswell, New Mexico.
The mission of the ILEA-R program is to provide advanced criminal justice instruction to law enforcement officials from around the world. In fact, in the last five years (the first classes started a week before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks), the academy has graduated more than 1,800 students from 68 countries.
Besides providing day-to-day administration of the program, SAIC provides some instruction at the academy, according to Jack Swickard, a community relations consultant for the program. In fact, SAIC developed the curriculum and operating procedures for the ILEA-R program, which exposes students to the society and institutions of the U.S.
"Through this program, SAIC is able to work with foreign law-enforcement officials and positively impact their countries," said Chuck Zang, who manages SAIC's Engineering, Test and Analysis Business Unit. "We consider it one of the business unit's premier programs."
Classes at ILEA-R range from modern policing strategies to global trends and emerging issues in transnational crime - countering international terrorism is emphasized, as well.
"This program has the opportunity to provide a united effort to combat terrorism and transnational crime," said Frank Taylor, site manager of the program.
In addition, the program includes a strong emphasis on human rights, according to Taylor.
"The delegates are experiencing new and different ideas in Roswell," said Taylor (students are referred to as delegates at the ILEA-R). "The most rewarding aspect is how we are able to change their perception of the United States. Some have negative thoughts about us, as people. When they leave, they have developed excellent relations with all of us, as well as people in the community, which greatly enhances our image around the world."
Fostering international communications
In addition to improving communications among U.S. and foreign law-enforcement officers, the ILEA-R program helps foster communications among neighboring countries that send students to the academy. (Before attending ILEA-R, delegates are required to attend one of the regional ILEAs in Gaborone, Botswana; Bangkok, Thailand; or Budapest, Hungary. These ILEAs are operated directly by the federal government.)
"One of the things we have really seen is the interaction... among the bordering countries," Taylor said. "We are able to establish a network among bordering countries to deal with international crime."
After returning home, a delegate from the African nation of Malawi sent an e-mail to Taylor: "I have settled back down to work and already I am using some of the skills I learned there in Roswell in my day-to-day work. I have to admit that we did learn a lot and it was an enriching experience, professionally, but also academically, socially and even psychologically... the warmth and hospitality we received from people at ILEA, Roswell and Albuquerque was just fantastic."
How has Roswell, the city known for a purported UFO crash in 1947, taken to the ILEA-R delegates? In 2002, the Roswell City Council made Ukrainian and Hungarian students honorary citizens of the community after the delegates honored a Roswell patrolman who was shot during an arrest.
In addition to SAIC, three universities help operate ILEA-R, including New Mexico Tech, Sam Houston State University, and Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell. New Mexico Tech, which holds the cooperative agreement with the State Department, is the lead institution in the consortium.
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