The Griffon News

The Western Institute chose the Regional Law Enforcement Academy (RELA) as its spearhead onto the new downtown campus.

 The move has brought on some unexpected benefits and some issues.

Sgt. John Walker, Academy Director, explained that the rela­tionship with the original campus is still close.

The cadets visit the main cam­pus for physical training and defensive tactics training, but all of their classes are in the down­town facility.

“It’s a real change for my secre­tary and me,” Walker said. “We used to be in a basement, bunker -type office and now it is so pleas­ant to have this open-windowed area and see what’s happening outside. We were lucky to get it.”

Cadets feel united by the move.

“Because we are in a stand alone building it now solidifies the academy as an entity unto itself, which I think was not as clear when we were on campus,” Walker said.

Walker also added that he sensed the downtown neigh­borhood is happy to have them there.

The building housing the RELA is the Scottish Rite building at the corner of Sixth and Robidoux streets, which is an older building with improvements and furnish­ings from the 1970s.

The RELA program rents space from the Scottish Rite, who still hold their events in the same building. 

“We haven’t had any conflict of schedule so far, most of their (the Scottish Rite’s) activities are at night and on weekends,” Walker said.

The evidence that the move is not quite complete begins with the RELA area on Missouri Western’s website.

The location mentioned on the website is still noted as Wilson Hall, where they were located on the main campus.

Also, there is no new training scheduled in St. Joseph for law enforcement officers after July 2007.

Walker explained that the absence of new training on the schedule may be because Western Institute also works in North Kansas City, holding some of the training there and maybe all of the slots were filled at that location.

He also mentioned that the lack of scheduled training events in St. Joseph is could be because the schedule has not been updated yet.

Walker added that there has been no downsizing of his program and enrollment is about the same.

“We have made a lateral move which gave us a more comfortable location and gave the University a presence downtown,” Walker said. “We haven’t encountered any insurmountable problems.  We are still expecting some class room equipment that hasn’t arrived, but those delays are normal.”

One of the activities on the downtown campus which adds to the visibility of the RELA program is that the cadets “do colors” twice each day.
“Do colors” refers to placing the United States flag onto the pole in front of the building’s entrance.

The St. Joseph Police Department and Buchanan County Sheriffs office is across the intersection from the RELA, which has afforded some benefit for the adjunct instruc­tors of the RELA. 

Some of these adjunct instructors are employed also in the police and sheriffs departments.
That is not where the close relationship ends however.

The RELA volunteered to assist the SJPD during the Trails West!® festival held downtown last August.

Walker also stated that Troop H of the Highway Patrol has also supported the training at the RELA.

“I think we have a good working relationship with law enforcement in the St. Joseph area,” Walker said.

Many cadets, such as St. Joseph native Chris Davis, have experienced both campuses during their education experience.

“It’s an entirely different pace here (the downtown campus) it is smaller with only one thing going on,” said Davis. “This move was good for the University, good for the cadets, and good for downtown.”

Davis never lived on campus but knows of cadets who are living in the dorms.
 
He says that there haven’t been any complaints about the travel to the downtown campus.

He also stated that he knows of no cadet living downtown yet but knows there are many apartments available.
Davis mentioned two things that the downtown campus doesn’t have. 

The classrooms do not have the computers and elec­tronics that the main campus has and there are no vend­ing machines in the halls for that quick snack between classes.

He joked about the furnishings in the lounge area stat­ing that they are very comfortable but definitely dated to the late 1960’s and 70’s.

Davis said he really enjoyed the concentrated type learning the downtown campus affords along with being in a neighborhood with different people of different lives.

“There is a boy across the street that watches us raise the flag every morning, sometimes he salutes along with the cadets.”