The new Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Connie L. Patrick, stationed at the Glynco campus, addressed the community in a reception held on the FLETC campus Thursday.
Representatives from Navajo Refining Co., Penasco Valley Telephone Cooperative, the Artesia City Council, the Artesia Industrial Development Committee, First National Bank and Congressman Joe Skeen’s office showed up to welcome Patrick.
The director spoke about the impact of the FLETC on the community and future plans for advancement.
She said there are no plans to reduce staff even though most of the air marshals have been trained. Instead, the FLETC in Artesia will be expanding.
Part of the expansion arises out of the need for a variety of training in different fields. Patrick said other agencies looking at the Artesia campus are the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the pilot training program.
She accredits this move forward to the work of local representatives in Washington D.C. She stated that the FLETC in Artesia had a “terrific delegation in New Mexico,” and that they are the ones that “make it happen.”
One of the changes in the FLETC will be a new assistant director. Local resident, Woody Wright, will assume leadership of the FLETC, while former Assistant Director Ray Havens will go to Glynco, Ga.
Another change for the Artesia FLETC will come from a potential move to Homeland Security. Presently, the FLETC is under the Department of Treasury.
According to Patrick this move “makes sense” because “approximately 70 percent of our workload projections are for bureaus which have been identified as those proposed to go to Homeland Security.”
Nine agencies belong to the Homeland Security Department, including; Immigration and Naturalization Service, U.S. Border Patrol, Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs Service, U.S. Secret Service and GSA Federal Protective Services. All nine are participants in the FLETC’s training.
In addition to entry level training, the FLETC also provides specialized training such as anti-terrorism, seaport security and money laundering.
The FLETC presently owns three permanent training sites in Glynco, Ga; Artesia, N.M; and Cheltenham, Md.
In total, more than 2,000 employees, partner agency personnel and contractors are assigned to the FLETC centers.
Patrick said of the Artesia campus that before September 11, 2001, it was one of the best kept secrets. To clarify, she explained that students and staff realized they had “a good thing going” and wanted to maintain the professional atmosphere.
Other support training is currently being provided in Charleston, S.C. for the U.S. Border Patrol, and the FLETC maintains an international law enforcement training division including a site in Gabarone, Botswana.
Patrick said she would like to see FLETC united. She plans to use the Artesia campus as a model for other training sites because of its success. She said advantages at the Artesia FLETC included training that takes place in a more realistic environment and having more space.
When asked about the FLETC’s impact on the community, Patrick said the growth should increase revenues for local businesses and create more employment.
The FLETC expects to graduate 35, 000 students this year and expects that number to grow to 56,000 next year. This means that Artesians can expect more development and business as a result of the FLETC.
Director Patrick also shared her appreciation of the local patriotism. When given the choice of where to spend 9-11, she chose Artesia. Commenting on the events at Bulldog Bowl, Patrick said the fireworks display was excellent and rivaled ones she had seen elsewhere.