SCLEA Program Invitation from the Chairman
March 3, 2023
Dear Chief/Sheriff:
I invite you to apply for the South Carolina Law Enforcement Accreditation (SCLEA) Program. Accreditation has been at the forefront for law enforcement agencies since the early 1980s and it remains a viable way for agencies to demonstrate professionalism to their communities. The SCLEA program provides a simple, straight-forward approach to accreditation. Our 3-year plan is designed to allow sufficient time for an agency to complete the process, taking into consideration that resource and budgetary items may need to be considered.
Accreditation involves taking a thoughtful, reflective look at your agency's policies and procedures and comparing them to widely-recognized best practices. It requires you to evaluate your existing policies against a set of standards, develop new policies and procedures where needed, and provide proofs of compliance.
With the support of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), SCLEA has recently implemented a new initiative designed to assist your agency. Experienced accreditation advisors will stay in contact with your agency's accreditation manager to answer questions, provide on-site training, and help to ensure your agency stays on track. If you are ready to follow the path toward best practices our SCLEA staff will be available to assist you through each phase of the process.
To apply, simply visit our website at www.sc-lea.org, complete the agency Memorandum of Understanding and the Agency Survey and forward both documents to our Program Coordinator, Angie Salley, at asalley@sc-lea.org. Angie will provide you with a copy of the State Accreditation Manual and a fee invoice. Accreditation fees are listed on the website and are based on agency size. I also highly recommend you join the South Carolina Police Accreditation Coalition
(SCPAC). This group of CEOs and accreditation managers meet quarterly to discuss all things dealing with State and National accreditation. For more information, visit www.southcarolinapac.org.
If your agency is already accredited by CALEA, our State Accreditation Program is still available to you. We have developed a set of 12 standards specific to South Carolina. You simply need to prove compliance with these standards to receive dual accreditation. To learn more about state accreditation or to discuss the process,
please feel free to contact the South Carolina Law Enforcement Accreditation office at (803) 673-6406 or sign-up to attend one of the quarterly SCPAC meetings.
Sincerely,
Signed by Chris Watts, Chairman
This project was supported, in whole or in part, by federal award numbers 15COPS-21-GK-02544-SPPS and 15COPS-22-GK-04118-PPSE awarded to South Carolina Law Enforcement Accreditation, Inc. by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. The opinions contained herein are those of the author(s) or contributor(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. References to specific individuals, agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an endorsement by the author(s), contributors, or the U.S. Department of Justice. Rather, the references are illustrations to supplement discussion of the issues.