Recently, Lt. Mike Connell and Sgt. Justin Tittle of the Benton Police Department completed an advanced criminal justice course of study offered through the Criminal Justice Institute in Little Rock.
Lt. Connell and Sgt. Tittle attended and successfully graduated from the School of Law Enforcement Supervision (SLES), which was designed by Arkansas law enforcement leaders to set a standard that focuses on leadership, education and advancement in the law enforcement profession.
It is a four-week supervisory development course scheduled one week per month over a four-month period. Course topics include: Leadership and Communications Excellence; Research Strategies; Challenging the Organizational Culture; Organizational and Nonverbal Communication; Stress Management; Social Intelligence; Managing Media Relations; Domestic Terrorism; Legal Topics and Information Systems and Applications.
Officers are required to successfully complete a written exam at the conclusion of each week of instruction. Each exam covers material drawn from the lectures, course texts, and outside reading assignments. In addition, this course requires officers to make oral presentations and prepare a research paper on a topic relevant to law enforcement supervision.
Lt. Connell is a 17 year veteran of the department and currently serves in a supervisory role in the patrol division. Sgt. Tittle is a 21 year veteran of the department and currently serves as the department training supervisor.
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