WASHINGTON – On Friday, September 16th, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, traveled to Glynco, Georgia to visit the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) provides training and instruction to tens of thousands of federal, state, and local law enforcement officers each year in nearly 100 courses.
“The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center is an invaluable resource for our law enforcement officers who are on the front lines every day, working to keep us safe,” said Senator Carper. “This centralized training center provides federal, state, and local law enforcement professionals from across the country with skills and knowledge they can deploy at home to help make our communities safer. As I saw during my visit, the training officers receive at FLETC also reinforces many of the important values – community-mindedness, a steadfast work ethic, and a commitment to serving others – that make our country strong and so resilient. The attacks like those we saw this past weekend continue to make it clear that we must prioritize providing our law enforcement officers with effective training so they are always prepared, especially when the unexpected arises.”
During his visit, Senator Carper met with senior training staff for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and FLETC, and observed training by the Counterterrorism Training Division at FLETC’s intermodal training facility.
Senator Carper also visited the TSA Academy located at FLETC to view training facilities for airport checkpoint screening, improvised explosive device detection, and the future site of new TSA training facilities.
“The men and women of the TSA have a tough job: they must screen hundreds of thousands of passengers each day quickly and effectively, while ensuring that nothing bad gets through. But in years past, the people we entrusted to carry out this critical mission did not always receive the training they needed in order to succeed in their jobs. I am encouraged by the progress TSA has made in providing our screeners the knowledge, tools, and skills they need while imparting a sense of pride in the duties they are asked to perform. I’m encouraged by the investments TSA has made in its work force during a time of record air travel, and I look forward to watching the agency continue to improve through its partnership with FLETC.”
Senator Carper also met with six Delawareans – three Delaware State Troopers, two U.S. Capitol Police Trainees, and one TSA employee – to discuss their training activities at FLETC.