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Interim VP for Administrative Services Bill Polley, OPS Interim Director Derek Watts, ILACP President and Bartonville PD Chief Brian Fengel, Sgt. Curt Bilbrey & President Jack Thomas
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OPS Receives Tier I Accreditation

April 3, 2019

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MACOMB, IL -- Western Illinois University's Office of Public Safety (OPS) has received Illinois Law Enforcement Accreditation Program (ILEAP) Tier I Accreditation and is one of just 34 police agencies across the state to achieve accreditation. WIU's OPS is one of six accredited collegiate police departments across the state.

"I would like to extend our sincere gratitude to recently-retired Director Scott Harris for his vision of having OPS become an accredited police agency, and to Sgt. Curt Bilbrey for his efforts and diligence in managing the accreditation process," said OPS Interim Director Derek Watts. "Because of the countless hours that Curt put into the process, the assessors noted that OPS' documentation and files were the best they had seen."

Tier I accreditation requires the department to meet 69 separate ILEAP standards regarding administration, operations, personnel and training, which are designed to follow best practices in policing. As part of the accreditation process, two ILEAP assessors visited campus to review OPS policies and procedures, inspect facilities and speak with OPS personnel. In addition, feedback was sought from members of the public regarding the Office of Public Safety's services to the University.

Western's Office of Public Safety started as Campus Safety and Security in 1956, replacing the security guard era. The department employs 24 full-time officers and operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week from Mowbray Hall on the WIU campus. In addition to routine patrol, OPS dispatches officers to the street on foot and bicycles, as well as in the residence halls nightly. Officers also perform such duties transporting money from campus buildings to local banks; providing security to athletic events and concerts; providing traffic control; providing transportation to the hospital; conducting building safety checks; hosting educational and safety-related programming; and supervising student patrol and emergency medical services on campus.



Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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