(Editor’s Note: Each year, Arkansas Business partners with the Arkansas Municipal League to present the Trendsetter City awards, which recognize exceptional initiatives underway in municipalities across the state. Large, medium and small-sized cities were honored in six categories: Diversity and Inclusion; Education/Workforce Development; Infrastructure and Water; Public Works/Environmental and Green Management; Technology and Security; and Tourism Development/Creative Culture. Below is one winner’s story. For more, click here.)
Technology and Security
Honorable Mention • Over 20,000
Population: 22,937 | Mayor: Mat Faulkner | County: White | Region: Central
The Challenge
Law enforcement’s current climate demands agencies change the way they interface with the public in order to gain communities’ trust. To help officers respond to various volatile, unpredictable and high-pressure situations, de-escalation training is a necessity. However, the practices suggested by federal and state levels can be time consuming and are often provided by state agencies that aren’t privy to the scenarios local officers are most likely to encounter.
The MILO training system provides instantaneous feedback to the officers. They are filmed, with a heart monitor attached, as they go through the training and can view their reactions during the simulations.
The Solution
The Searcy Police Department received a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Community Oriented Police Services program in 2022. The grant proposed the purchasing of officer training simulation technology and the establishing of a regional training center. The training center will serve the SPD, along with any local agency in White County and some of the surrounding counties. The SPD now uses the MILO Rank Theater 180 program, which offers an immersive, realistic training environment.
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