Volume 36, No. 4 - July/ August 2006 Campus Law ... - IACLEA

Chinese and Irish Security Officers Visit FloridaBy Stephen L. NordlingerFor six days, from June 23 to June 28, adelegation of Chinese and of Irish campussecurity officers visited CentralFlorida for the International Associationof Campus Law Enforcement Administrators’2006 Annual Conference.My name is Stephen Nordlinger and Iam a community service officer with theUniversity of Central Florida Police Department.I’m working on a degree inforeign languages and cultures, so whenI heard there was a delegation of Chinesecampus security officers coming, Ieagerly volunteered to be their chaperone.I practiced my Potonghua Hanyu(Mandarin Chinese) day and night for severalweeks to prepare for their arrival. Iwas looking forward to working with nativespeakers who had authentic accentsstraight from Beijing. Working with Lieut.Gerald Emert and coworker Scott George,we prepared to make their arrival andvisit informative and enjoyable.The Chinese delegation consisted ofMr. Wang Xinke (head of security ofWuhan University), Mr. Luo Juntain (directorof security of the East China Universityof Petroleum), Mr. Song Jiliang(director of security at the People’s Hospitalat Peking University) and Ms. LuRonglei (Mandarin Chinese-to-English interpreterand English teacher).The three Chinese security officers attendedseveral days of ICLEA informationalsessions with the help of their interpreter.On other days, Scott Georgeand I took them on various sightseeingtrips around central Florida. We escortedthem to the Disney World Epcot Centertheme park, a tour of the University ofCentral Florida campus and University ofCentral Florida Police Department, and atrip to Cocoa Beach for a surfing lesson.We visited a variety of American Chineserestaurants and had fun comparing thevariety of Americanized Chinese food.The delegates brought preserved vegetableswith them to help them adjust toAmerican foods. I tasted these deep redvegetables that were sealed in vacuumpackedplastic bags. They were very salty,which kept them preserved.The George Washington University PoliceDepartment (UPD) announced recentlythat it has received accreditationfrom the Commission on Accreditationfor Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA),becoming one of a select few collegeand university police departments in thecountry formally recognized by the association.“Due to the selectivity of receivingCALEA accreditation, the University PoliceDepartment will be recognized asan elite force among university policedepartments nationwide,” said UniversityPolice Chief Dolores Stafford. “Weexhaustively revised our procedures —from training to response to investigationfollow-up. This process has en-We had a great cultural exchange withdays of questions going back and forthon every aspect of our jobs, languages,and societies. I learned volumes of informationabout Chinese culture and the organizationalnature of Chinese police andcollege security departments. As part ofmy job duties, I work with the large populationof international students and staffof our university, so spending this muchtime with members of another cultureincreases my knowledge of and sensitivityto their customs.Continued on page 38GW University Police DepartmentReceives CALEA Accreditationhanced an already responsive department.”George Washington’s UPD underwenta rigorous process to receive accreditation.The five-phase process beganwith an application to CALEA fouryears ago and culminated with full accreditedstatus. During the approvalprocess, UPD submitted proof of compliancewith each of the 450 standardsset by CALEA, went through several onsiteassessments and inspections, andattended a public hearing at whichCALEA heard testimony from agencypersonnel, assessors, staff, and membersof the community.Continued on page 38JULY/AUGUST 2006 / 37