Those concerned with public safety at their workplaces and schools, students and alumni interested in public safety careers, and businesses and agencies seeking public safety professionals to employ can learn while connecting with job and hiring possibilities at a tandem event co-sponsored by Tri-State University. The first Public Safety Symposium and Career and Internship Fair will be held in the new Public Safety Academy of Northeast Indiana in Fort Wayne, Ind., on Friday, April 11.

Tri-State University sponsors the symposium, and TSU joins a consortium of area colleges and universities including Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, Indiana Tech, Ivy Tech Community College, Manchester College, and Taylor University Fort Wayne in also offering a free career fair that day.

The symposium will begin at 8:30 a.m., addressing a grim reality of modern life for universities and businesses alike—the possibility of violent attack. “Active Shooters: How to Prepare for the Worst” will be presented by Dr. Jason Winkle, president of the International Tactical Officers Training Association and an assistant professor of exercise science at Indiana State University in Terre Haute.

The workshop will help prepare school administrators, teachers, counselors, and law enforcement professionals to deal with shooting situations like those at Northern Illinois University and Virginia Tech over the past year. Three hours of continuing education credit, approved by the Indiana law Enforcement Training Board, will be granted to in-service law enforcement personnel who register and attend.

Dr. Thomas Beckner, Director of Criminal Justice and associate professor at TSU Fort Wayne, and Craig Laker, chair and associate professor in the TSU Department of Criminal Justice, collaborated on the symposium’s subject matter and retaining Winkle as the speaker.

The career and internship fair, beginning at noon, will spotlight job opportunities in law enforcement, corrections, and social service agencies. Employers interested in hiring students in the fields of criminal justice and human services for internships and full-time positions will attend, and some will provide exhibits to further illustrate their career offerings. Walking tours of the new, state-of-the-art training and education facility, where Beckner directs TSU’s emergency management and criminal justice programs, will also be available directly before the fair.

The symposium and career fair are free to the public. The symposium will include a light breakfast provided by TSU’s American Criminal Justice Association. Registration and the breakfast are from 8-8:30 a.m. Exhibitors who wish to display at the fair will pay $15, which includes a box lunch. Exhibitors, students, and alumni may attend the career fair if they do not elect to attend the symposium.

Shuttle transportation will be offered from the main Angola campus. The Public Safety Academy of Northeast Indiana is located at 7602 Patriot Crossing, Fort Wayne.

Space will be limited at the events, and registration is required. Call 260.665.4123 or e-mail johnsont@tristate.edu to register. The deadline is Friday, March 28. Dr. Beckner can be reached at 260.439.8350, or professor Laker at 260.665.4862 for more information.

“Clearly, campus and school safety issues are of critical importance to all communities,” Beckner said. “We hope this symposium will provide helpful information and stimulate local dialogue between educational institutions and public safety officials. We at Tri-State are happy to be a part of bringing this program to the Fort Wayne area.”