National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives 15th Annual Conference A Great Time in New Jersey!

The National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives 15th Annual Conference was held on August 4 - 8, 2010, hosted by the Bergen County Sheriff Department of New Jersey.  There many opportunities for networking, training and a gathering of a terrific group of women in law enforcment.

Opening Day ceremonies included participants in their dress uniform.  At this ceremony the Motorola Women Law Enforcement Executive of the Year was awarded to Chief Ellen Hanson of Lenexa, Kansas.  Chief Hanson is respected and admired for the professional, dedicated and caring way she leads her department.   Chief Hanson is a founding member of NAWLEE and has been a role model for women all over the country.  In particular, she has been a role model for the women in her department and never fails to bring several of her officers with her to the NAWLEE conference.  Her mentoring results show with Lt. Dawn Layman of Lenexa PD, the current 2nd VP, and sworn in at the conference as the new 1st VP of NAWLEE for the upcoming year. 

The Glass Ceiling Awards were given out to several women who have achieved rank or risen to the next level in rank during the past year.  Keynote speaker - Kathleen Puckett, formerly a Special  Agent with the FBI, spoke about "Your Brain on Law Enforcement" and how the female and male brain work differently and what that brings to law enforcement.

Training segments included: 

• Mentoring Workshop - How to set up a mentoring program in your department - Lt. Dawn Layman
• Stress Management Workshop
• Online Predators and Child Porn
• Innovations in Law Enforcement
• Post Traumatic Stress Impact on Law Enforcement - Bob Delaney, author of "Convert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob" and a former New Jersey State Trooper
• Proactive Strategies for Recruiting, Hiring and Retaining Women Officers - Sheriff Leo McGuire, Chief Patty Garrett Patterson and Capt. (Ret.) Roe Manghisi

On the last day of training a presentation was given called "Women of Ground Zero: Acts of Courage and Compassion" by the authors Mary Carouba and Susan Hagen.  They were accompanied by two women, P.O. Carol Paukner (retired) and Sgt. Susan Keane of the Port Authority Police of New York & New Jersey.  Both of these women were working on Sept. 11, 2001 and experienced the devastation as they did all they could to save countless people.  There was not a dry eye in the room.  A visit to Ground Zero and the Tribute Museum in New York was made on the last day of the conference.  

The conference hosts entertained the attendees with a night at Meadowlands/Pegasus for dinner and horse racing.  The final dinner was aboard the Princess Cruise where we cruised the Hudson and saw the New York skyline and the Statute of Liberty.

The new Executive Board for 2010-2011 was sworn in and are as follows:

• President - Chief Katherine Perez - Bowie PD, MD
• 1st Vice President - Lt. Dawn Layman - Lenexa PD, KS
• 2nd Vice President - Undersheriff Sharon MacDonald - Bergen County Sheriff Dept., NJ
• Secretary - Capt. Karen Soley - U. of Wisconsin PD, WI
• Treasurer - Lt. Penny Ficsher - Michigan State University PD, MI
• Immediate Past President - Chief Susan Rockett - Mexico Dept. of Public Safety, MO
• Associate Member at Large - Sgt. Paula Balafas, Wheat Ridge PD, CO
• Executive Director - Chief (Ret.) Diane Skoog - Carver PD, MA

With the swearing in of the new board, past president Chief Patty Garrett Patterson, has turned her eyes on another office as she seeks to be elected as vice president-at-large for the International Chiefs of Police this October at the IACP Annual Conference.