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MCC Daily Tribune

Public Safety Achieves CALEA Accredited Status

The Department of Public Safety has been working to achieve accredited status through the national credentialing authority known as the Commission on the Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) for the past several years. CALEA was formed in 1979 through the joint efforts of law enforcement's major executive associations:

  • International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP)
  • National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE)
  • National Sheriffs' Association (NSA)
  • Police Executive Research Forum (PERF)

CALEA Accreditation programs provide public safety agencies a challenging opportunity to voluntarily meet an established set of professional standards, which require:

  • Comprehensive and uniform written directives that clearly define authority, performance, and responsibilities
  • Reports and analyses to make fact-based and informed management decisions
  • Preparedness to address natural or man-made critical incidents
  • Community relationship building and maintenance
  • Continuous pursuit of excellence through annual reviews and other assessment measures

The Campus Security Accreditation Program, designed for educational campus security/public safety departments, requires proof of compliance with 138 standards. Since the cornerstone of accreditation is scripted policies and procedures, the first step in the Department's preparation was the arduous creation of a substantive general orders manual, which required authoring over fifty new policies and the rewriting of an additional twenty-four existing procedures, as well as the issuance of a comprehensive Rules and Regulations manual. Next, electronic, online accessible folders were created containing the written directive applicable to each standard as well as proofs of compliance (reports, memos, analyses, etc.) that provided evidence of the Department's observance of each benchmark, which were reviewed by CALEA Compliance Service Members (CSM). The final step of assessment occurred over two days as the CALEA assessment team conducted remote interviews (unable to be onsite due to COVID-19 restrictions) with department and college personnel, based on areas of focus identified by Public Safety staff, that provided examples of department efficiency and compliance with standards.

On Thursday, November 12, Chief Tony Perez and Assistant Chief Kevin Hall attended the CALEA Candidate Agency Final Review committee meeting. During this remote gathering, CALEA commissioners asked a few questions, complemented MCC on its smooth agency review, and made a motion to grant accredited status to the agency, which passed unanimously.

Currently, only 10 law enforcement agencies hold CALEA accredited status in New York State, 8 certified under the law enforcement program and 2 (MCC and New York University) under the Campus Security Program. In addition, MCC is the first community college nationally to achieve this prestigious honor for its Public Safety Department within its Campus Safety program. Receiving accredited status through a national program known as, "The Gold Standard in Public Safety" provides a clearly recognizable affirmation of the Department's dedication to professionalism and agency personnel are already preparing to successfully maintain this prominence for years to come.

Hezekiah Simmons
CFO and Vice President, Administrative Services
12/03/2020