Skagit Valley College

Catalog Course Search Details

 Course Title:   Parks Law Enforcement Academy (PLEA) Module 2

 Title Abbreviation:   PLEA - MODULE 2

 Department:    CJ

 Course #:    242

 Credits:    6

 Variable:     No

 IUs:    6.5

 CIP:    030208

 EPC:    129

 REV:    2018


 Course Description  

Discusses the history, mission, philosophy, goals and objectives of National Park Service/Washington State Parks law enforcement and protection. Incorporates policies, procedures and protocols, Director's Orders RM-9, Tactical Communications, interviewing and interrogation techniques, conflict management, managing abnormal behaviors, description and identification, victim/witness awareness, special needs groups, and use of force principles and guidelines.

 Prerequisite  

Prerequisite: Extensive background and criminal history check/drug analysis and Dept Chair/Committee Approval.

Additional Course Details

Contact Hours (based on 11 week quarter)

Lecture: 55

Lab: 22

Other: 0

Systems: 0

Clinical: 0


Intent: Distribution Requirement(s) Status:  

Vocational Preparatory Required for certificate  

Equivalencies At Other Institutions

Other Institution Equivalencies Table
Institution Course # Remarks
N/A

Learning Outcomes

After completing this course, the student will be able to:

  1. Understand the differences between policies, procedures, protocols, memorandums of understanding, guidelines, laws and rules as they apply in the park/public safety workplace.
  2. Recite important milestones that occurred during the formative years of the National Park Service and Washington's State Park system.
  3. Name Federal and state agencies that perform functions that influence or cooperate with National Park Service and State Park management and operations.
  4. Have a working knowledge of DO-RM-9 as it relates to authority and jurisdiction (national parks).
  5. Have a working knowledge of RCW 79A.15.060 as it relates to authority and jurisdiction (state parks).
  6. Understand the communication feedback loop, and the value of non-verbal communication.
  7. Name certain obstacles or barriers to human communication.
  8. Discuss various strategies for managing conflict and abnormal behaviors encountered in parks.
  9. Identify various special needs groups.
  10. Differentiate between consensual contacts, field interviews, and interrogations.
  11. Employ various strategies for providing victim and witness awareness.
  12. Define the elements of the S.A.R.A. model of community relations.
  13. Identify elements of the integrated use of force model, emphasizing response to violator reaction.

General Education Learning Values & Outcomes

Revised August 2008 and affects outlines for 2008 year 1 and later.

0. Application and Integration

Definition: Applying information from one or more disciplines and/or field experiences in new contexts (Outcome 0.1); developing integrated approaches or responses to personal, academic, professional, and social issues (Outcomes 0.2-0.5).

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
0.1 Apply theories and concepts studied in the classroom to field, clinical, shop, research, or laboratory settings.
0.2 Identify the strengths and limitations of different fields of study.
0.3 Identify and evaluate the relationships among different perspectives within a field of study and among different fields of study.

1. Information Literacy

Definition: Recognizing when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
1.1 Determine the extent of information needed.
1.2 Access the needed information effectively, efficiently, ethically, and legally.
1.3 Evaluate information and its sources critically.
1.4 Evaluate issues (for example economic, legal, historic, social) surrounding the use of information.
1.5 Effectively integrate and use information ethically and legally to accomplish a specific purpose.

2. Critical Thinking

Definition: The ability to think critically about the nature of knowledge within a discipline and about the ways in which that knowledge is constructed and validated and to be sensitive to the ways these processes often vary among disciplines.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
2.1 Identify and express concepts, terms, and facts related to a specific discipline.
2.2 Analyze issues and develop questions within a discipline.
2.3 Identify, interpret, and evaluate pertinent data and previous experience to reach conclusions.
2.4 Evaluate decisions by analyzing outcomes and the impact of actions.
2.5 Identify similarities and differences in the ways in which data is collected and analyzed in different disciplines.
2.6 Recognize how the value and biases in different disciplines can affect the ways in which data is analyzed.
2.7 Identify and evaluate connections and relationships among disciplines.
2.8 Describe how one’s own preconceptions, biases and values affect one’s response to new and ambiguous situations.
2.9 Apply and/or create problem-solving strategies to successfully adapt to unpredictable and/or changing environments.

3. Communication

Definition: Understanding and producing effective written, spoken, visual, and non-verbal communication.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
3.1 Recognize, read, and comprehend academic and/or professional writing.
3.2 Recognize, produce and demonstrate appropriate interpersonal, group, and public speaking skills.
3.3 Demonstrate effective listening skills.
3.4 Produce academic and/or professional writing and integrate it into written and spoken projects.
3.5 Recognize, comprehend, and use non-verbal behaviors appropriate to a given context.
3.6 Recognize, comprehend, and use visual communication appropriate to a given context.
3.7 Adapt communication to diverse audiences and media.

4. Community & Cultural Diversity

Definition: Recognizing the value of human communities and cultures from multiple perspectives through a critical understanding of their similarities and differences.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
4.1 Identify and express concepts, terms, and issues associated with the diverse perspectives of race, social class, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, and culture.
4.2 Understand, value and respect human differences and commonalities as they relate to issues of race, social class, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities and culture.
4.3 Understand the historically and socially constructed nature of—and the meanings attributed to—human differences.
4.4 Demonstrate effective communication across differences in human communities and cultures.
4.5 Adapt to and function effectively in communities and cultures different from one's own.

5. Global & Local Awareness & Responsibility

Definition: Understanding the complexity and interdependence of, and stewardship responsibilities to, local and global communities and environments.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
5.1 Understand the impact of their own and other’s actions on local/global communities and environments and how those communities/environments affect them in turn.
5.2 Identify diverse communities and their shared/competing interests and develop strategies for prevention and resolution of conflict.
5.3 Understand the consequences of choices as they relate to local/global community and environmental issues.
5.4 Understand the concept of local/global stewardship, and its ethical components, to communities and environments.
5.5 Demonstrate ethical practices as part of stewardship to local/global communities and environments.

6. Individual Awareness & Responsibility

Definition: Understanding, managing, and taking responsibility for one’s learning and behavior in varied and changing environments.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
6.1 Identify ethical and healthy choices and apply these personally, socially, academically, and professionally.
6.2 Demonstrate standards of professionalism in manner, appearance, and setting appropriate to the context, including the classroom, workplace, and community.
6.3 Apply successful organizational strategies of planning, goal setting, prioritizing, resolving conflict, and managing time to specific goals and/or projects.
6.4 Use self-reflection to recognize and define a sense of self-identity in personal, social/gender, and/or cultural/global terms and in relationship to others.
6.5 Develop self-monitoring and self-advocacy skills to effect positive life changes.

9. Scientific Literacy

Definition: Understanding scientific principles, and analyzing and applying scientific information in a variety of contexts.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
9.4 Use scientific concepts and principles to understand the natural world, human behavior and culture, and relationships between humans and the rest of the natural world.

10. Technology

Definition: Understanding the role of technology in society and using technology appropriately and effectively.

Outcomes: Students will be able to . . .
10.2 Demonstrate an understanding of legal, ethical, and environmental issues in the use and misuse of technology.
10.3 Use technology appropriate to the context and task to effectively retrieve and manage information, solve problems, and facilitate communication.

Course Contents

  1. NPS Law Enforcement Policies and Procedures/Authority and Jurisdiction. Protection and Stewardship in Parks.
  2. History, Mission, Philosophy and Objectives. Community Relations.
  3. Organization and Function of Federal/State Agencies. Use of Force.
  4. Interview and Interrogation. Conflict Management.
  5. Managing Abnormal Behavior. Description and Identification.
  6. Victim/Witness Awareness. Special Needs Groups.
  7. Behavior Science, Use of Force, Interview, and Conflict Field Labs. Line of Duty Deaths/Below 100 Program.