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SANFORD, N.C. — Since Ben Wise was hired a few months ago, he and Dustin Miller, �ڰ�������’s Justice Studies Department Chair, have been driving to area law enforcement agencies to meet with chiefs and training coordinators. 

“We go sit down with them and say, ‘Hey, we are here for you, tell me what you need,’” said Wise, director of the college’s criminal justice and drone continuing education programs.  

Those conversations are informing the already-evolving way that �ڰ������� offers public safety training.

For example, �ڰ������� is now working to add radar certification to its continuing education training. That was the number one training need mentioned by the law enforcement leaders during Miller and Wise’s recent trips to visit the local agencies, they said. 

The training teaches officers to use lidar and radar tools to measure drivers’ speeds and enforce speed limits. Wise recently took a course to become certified as a school director to begin offering the training and hired a highly qualified instructor to teach the course. 

�ڰ������� plans to offer training for officers who need to be recertified for their radar skills on Aug. 10 and 11. After that, Wise said, they hope to begin to schedule training for first-time certifications.

Some of the other recent training that �ڰ������� has offered to law enforcement agencies include drone piloting and Precision Immobilization Technique certification. PIT training involves teaching law enforcement how to use a squad car to immobilize a fleeing vehicle. 

“We all know the longer a vehicle pursuit continues, the greater the risk for those involved,” 

Miller explained. 

�ڰ������� is uniquely set up to offer the training, due to the 2.5-mile closed driving course it maintains at its Emergency Services Training Center in Sanford. 

To discuss how �ڰ������� can schedule custom training to meet law enforcement agency needs, contact Ben Wise at bwise@cccc.edu. 

Public Safety Administration 

�ڰ������� is also helping area first responders get ahead with its Public Safety Administration program, which offers a two-year associate degree for first responders who are looking to advance within their fields.

Degrees have become necessary for advancement, Miller said, but many working first responders cannot easily fit classes into their schedule because they are taking on 12-hour shifts, and rotating working days, nights, and weekends. It can be hard to work in set-schedule classes. 

So instead, �ڰ������� is offering a flexible online program, built around eight-week classes that students can complete on their own schedules. Students can also get credit for prior learning, such as the basic training they took to enter their fields and additional continuing education training they’ve received during their jobs. 

Miller is currently teaching the degree’s Critical Incident Management course this summer. He said the program has drawn a range of students from across public safety fields, especially law enforcement officers and firefighters who are at a rank of captain or above and interested to get to the next level. 

Spots are available in the program's next cohort, which will start this fall semester. To learn more information or enroll in �ڰ�������’s public safety administration program, visit  .