Washington – U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and U.S. Representatives Marion Berry (AR-01), Vic Snyder (AR-02) and Mike Ross (AR-04) today announced that the University of Arkansas System Criminal Justice Institute in Little Rock will receive a $1,000,000 U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) grant to continue its Rural Executive Management Institute (REMI) project that provides training for rural sheriffs and police chiefs throughout Arkansas and the United States.
REMI offers a four-day course for rural law enforcement executives and senior managers who serve cities of 25,000 or less, counties of 50,000 or less and any tribal reservation. Courses are held in five cities throughout the country and focus on management, budgeting, grant writing, technology, and other topics important to rural law enforcement managers. Funds will be used to support instructors and cover travel expenses for those who attend.
The University of Arkansas System employs four instructors to administer the program and all materials used to teach the courses are purchased in Arkansas. The program has had more than 700 total participants in its history and 72 from Arkansas.
“This funding will provide important training for Arkansas’s sheriffs and police chiefs, and I am pleased that the University of Arkansas System is leading this initiative for rural law enforcement throughout the country,” Lincoln said. “Rural Arkansans rely on strong local police forces to keep them safe, and I’ll continue to fight to ensure that we have the federal resources and support we need to stay safe and strong.”
“Rural law enforcement officers face unique challenges when serving their communities. This grant will allow rural sheriffs and police chiefs across Arkansas to learn valuable skills to help them improve operations throughout their departments and better protect their residents,” Pryor said.
“This is a great opportunity for our police chiefs and sheriffs to advance their training and skills, and continue to protect the local communities that rely on their brave work,” Berry said. “Any investment in our local law enforcement is also an investment in the communities they serve.”
“Through continuing education and collaborative learning programs such as REMI, federal state and local law enforcement agencies can advance their skills to prevent and better control crime in rural areas,” Snyder said. “I am pleased to help secure this funding that will support a program to enhance the efforts of our hardworking law enforcement officers.”
“Our communities depend on local law enforcement having the resources they need to keep our families safe,” Ross said. “I am pleased to announce this federal investment in CJI’s REMI project because we should continually work to ensure our first responders have the necessary tools to quickly answer the needs of their citizens.”
“Since its inception, the Criminal Justice Institute has been committed to providing rural law enforcement agencies in Arkansas with the educational programs and services they need to better serve and protect their communities. I am confident that the framework we have developed in our state will enable us to effectively extend these programs and services to also benefit rural communities across the United States,” said Dr. Cheryl May, Director of the Criminal Justice Institute, University of Arkansas System and National Center for Rural Law Enforcement.
