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Law enforcement disability awareness training offered at NU

by jmaloni

Press release

Fri, Jun 21st 2013 03:15 pm

The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, Office of Public Safety and the Niagara University First Responders Disability Awareness Training Office have announced a series of "Disability Awareness Training for Law Enforcement" train the trainer courses. This series of courses is designed specifically for police officers.

As part of the series, a free, two-day training session will be offered June 24-25 at Niagara University.

This presentation brings together education on disabilities while enhancing sensitivity. Included in this are disabilities defined and appropriate response, characteristics and how to identify disabilities, the role of caregivers and service providers, candid video instruction, federal and municipality roles and responsibilities, the perspective of the disability community, victimization, challenging scenarios and behaviors and how to address them, current trends and topics, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and etiquette and interaction skills. An extensive amount of resources will be provided.

Specific topics covered include:

•Disabilities defined specific to law enforcement;

•Service provision and supports and how to develop a collaborative relationship;

•Progressive approaches to addressing emergency situations;

•Emergency services-service provider collaboration;

•Challenging behaviors and responsiveness;

•Municipality role and responsibility;

•Victimization and the disabled; and

•Proper etiquette and interaction skills.

The ability to respond to individuals with disabilities has posed varying challenges to police officers across the country. High profile cases have exposed the need for more involved awareness and education regarding the characteristics and challenges some individuals pose. As the population increases and more individuals are active in the community, the need to ensure accurate and appropriate response is critical. Studies show that 50-80 percent of an officer's encounters are with an individual with a disability while individuals with disabilities are seven times more often the victim of a crime.

Other training sessions are being offered in Orange, Broome and Onondaga counties.

For a registration form and additional information, contact Senior Training Technician Scott Neff by email at [email protected] or by phone at 518-485-7542.

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