JEFFERSON CITY, March 23, 2005—Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt today announced continuing education alternatives for law officers also serving on active military duty. One of the alternatives allows Missouri law enforcement officers who are on active military duty to count some military training courses towards their law enforcement continuing education requirements.

“We want to get our men and women back to their families and back to work when they get home from military duty,” Blunt said. “By allowing these courses to count dually, our officers will not have to go through several more hours of training when they come home to us.”

Blunt ordered the Missouri Department of Public Safety, the state licensing agency for peace officers, to accept law enforcement and criminal justice-related military training courses to count towards law enforcement continuing education requirements.

In addition to accepting dual-credit courses, the Peace Officer Standards and Training Program at the Department of Public Safety also offers two other continuing education alternatives. Peace officers who are deployed overseas may apply for a waiver of their continuing education requirements during their tours of duty, and those deployed in the U.S. may apply for an extension of time to complete the continuing education requirements.

Interested officers called to active duty should contact the Peace Officer Standards and Training Program at the Department of Public Safety at 573-751-4905 for more information.