Denver, like each of the FBI’s local field offices, has a community outreach program that complements and strengthens our many efforts to protect you, your businesses, and your families in concrete ways through a range of activities and initiatives.
Our recent activities include:
The FBI Denver Division celebrated Flag Day on Thursday, June 14, 2012. In honor of the anniversary of the adoption of the American Flag as our national symbol, 11 local Denver Boy Scouts from Troop 358 led the annual commemorative flag raising ceremony. Once the American flag was posted, both the Colorado state and FBI flags were raised as well. Following the morning ceremony, Special Agent in Charge James Yacone challenged the Scouts and FBI employees to a round of Flag Day trivia, pictured below. More photos
Denver Special Agent in Charge James Yacone leads a round of Flag Day trivia with Boy Scouts and FBI employees on June 14, 2012.
On April 5, Director Robert Mueller presented the 2012 Director’s Community Leadership Award to Melanie Pearlman, executive director of the Counterterrorism Education Learning Lab.
Denver field office Director’s Community Leadership Award 2011
In August, the Denver Division graduated its latest class of Citizens Academy attendees, capping a 7-week training program involving eight in-depth sessions of classroom instruction and hands-on activities. Students participated in firearms demonstrations, practical problems involving the collection and preservation of physical evidence, and gained insight into the structure and operation of an FBI field office and resident agencies. The picture below shows the class on graduation night with SAC James Davis, ASAC Mike Rankin, and PAS Dave Joly.
Citizens Academy graduates were exposed to issues relevant to the Colorado and Wyoming area such as the role of the FBI in American Indian tribal territory and the participation of the Denver Division in the Najibullah Zazi case. Students were also educated in the role of groups such as the Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force, the Metro Gang Task Force, and the Rocky Mountain Computer Forensic Laboratory.
During a trip to the Highlands Ranch Law Enforcement Training Facility, students watched a demonstration by FBI SWAT members and were instructed in the basic use of both Glock handguns and the MP-5 submachine gun. In the picture below, students pose with FBI SWAT members around the Denver Division’s Mine Resistant Armored Personal Carrier.
citizens2011_02.jpg
Among our other ongoing efforts:
Meeting with minority groups and civic organizations to talk about what the FBI can do with them and for them and hosting town hall meetings as needed to dialogue on key issues;
Holding Community Relations Executive Seminar Training (CREST)—a shorter, more focused version of the Citizen’s Academy conducted in partnership with a community group—to facilitate the exchange of information and provide an inside look at the FBI;
crest.jpg
Former Special Agent in Charge James Davis speaks at a CREST session.
Sending our special agents and others from the FBI into schools and civic meetings to explain emerging crime and security threats and to provide specific advice on how to prevent being victimized by these threats;
In concert with the Rocky Mountain Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI, banding together to create crime prevention programs and other initiatives that benefit communities;
Serving on committees and boards for schools, community groups, and social and health services and launching drives to bring food, gifts, and toys to the less fortunate during the holidays and other times of the year;
Encouraging citizens to step forward to report crime and serve as witnesses in court;
Partnering with the American Football Coaches Association and its National Child Identification Program to distribute Child ID kits at football games and other events; and
Hosting Adopt-A-School programs that put volunteer agents and staff members inside classrooms to mentor and tutor “at risk” kids.