Reynolds Community College Police Lieutenant
Milton Franklin recently became the first police officer in the Virginia
Community College System to graduate from the prestigious Federal Bureau of
Investigation National Academy. Franklin was part of an international group
that participated in a 10-week leadership development course that is
specialized for law enforcement executive officers. Participation
is by invitation only and candidates are drawn from every state, from U.S.
territories, and from over 160 international partner nations.
“Even though we all were a little nervous the
first day we got there, we quickly learned that we were there to meet and learn
from each other and learn new ways of policing,” noted Franklin. “In the end
the academy made us all smarter and stronger, in hopes, making our home units
better.”
At the academy, the students were provided with
instruction and facilitation in the areas of leadership, strategic planning,
legal issues, labor relations, media relations, social issues, and police
programs. Participants had the opportunity to exchange plans, problems, and
solutions with their peers; to develop new thoughts and ideas; and to share
successes of their own units.
Franklin, who has been at Reynolds for over six years,
started most mornings with physical training, followed by six hours of class
training – over time he participated in seven classes including his favorites “Officer
involved in a shooting” and “Active shooter”.
“It is important to also be in very good
physical shape,” said Franklin who played football at Virginia Tech from
1981-1984.
Franklin’s physical fitness test of completing the “Yellow
Brick Road” consisted of a 6.1-mile grueling run through a hilly, wooded trail
where he was challenged to climb over walls, run through creeks, jump through
simulated windows, scale rock faces with ropes, crawl under barbed wire in
muddy water and maneuver across a cargo net.
“Less than 1% of law enforcement officers are able to attend
the national academy,” said Franklin whose graduation class of 244 students
represented 23 different countries including Italy, Indonesia and Finland.
“When talking to other students I learned that we all are pretty much dealing
with the same problems and now I have 244 different resources out there I can
call directly and consult with. The academy taught us our peers are there for
us to learn from.”
“We are very proud of Lieutenant
Franklin,” said Reynolds Police Chief Paul Ronca. “His selection to attend the
academy was well-deserving and we look forward to using his experiences there
to make the college’s police department even better for our students, staff and
faculty.”
The Reynolds Police Department in 2013 became the only
Virginia Community College System institution to achieve accreditation status
from the Virginia Law Enforcement Professional Standards Commission for its
commitment to law enforcement excellence and the successful completion of the
certification process through the Virginia Law Enforcement Accreditation
Program.
“Personally, I have been trained by the best to be more
professional, to have more self-confidence, to be more out spoken and am now
better prepared for the next professional step,” exclaimed Franklin. “And
hopefully with becoming a better law enforcement officer I make the Reynolds
Police Department and Reynolds Community College even better.”
