ICCB Awards FBI for Homeland Security Campus Liaison Project

HOMELAND SECURITY CAMPUS LIAISON PROJECT

In a unique collaboration with the FBI that began in 2004, the Illinois Community College Board scheduled a series of presentations for community college trustees, administrators, and staff to heighten awareness regarding strategies and tactics used by terrorist groups to recruit postsecondary students in Illinois.  An additional goal of this project was to establish a point of contact at each institution to facilitate a network of communication and information sharing.  The project focused on the need for partnership and communication between higher education and law enforcement and the desire to achieve a positive balance between protecting national security and maintaining the values of diversity and openness so important in the higher education community. Both of these goals were met. The FBI has indicated that the collaboration between Illinois community colleges and its office has created a model that can be expanded nationwide.

At its January 28 meeting, the ICCB presented an award for excellence to the FBI in appreciation for partnering with the community colleges as an essential component of this project.

Pictured in the photo are (left to right) Guy Alongi, ICCB Chairman; Jim Thurston, Supervisory Special Agent of the Field Intelligence Group; Rebecca Miller, Counterterrorism Analyst; and Geoff Obrzut, ICCB President and CEO.