The Vermont Criminal Justice Council (VCJC) is now using the Acadis Readiness Suite from Vector Solutions to improve training and readiness, the company says.

VCJC is responsible for establishing rules, policies, regulations, and standards for the certification and training of criminal justice personnel in Vermont. Additionally, the council hosts two basic academy classes per year, in addition to instructor classes and in-service training. In 2024, law enforcement officers in Vermont must complete 30 hours of in-service training and train on topics including first aid and CPR, firearms qualification, the use of force, domestic violence response, and if they carry them, conducted electrical weapons.

New requirements stipulate that each law enforcement agency in Vermont must submit an annual training submission form that attests that annual training requirements have been met for each officer employed with the agency. Additionally, agencies must maintain thorough documentation on all training completions and be ready to share those records with the council as requested. With the implementation of Acadis, the council hopes to streamline and simplify this process and save administrative time for both local agencies and VCJC.

When considering the selection of the council’s new training technology partner, it was important that the solution selected could act as a full training management and performance records management system. Areas to improve the council’s records management processes had previously been identified, largely related to a need for a more efficient and centralized system. Additionally, new mandates related to the professional regulation of law enforcement officers in Vermont created further record-keeping requirements for the council, the company says.

“There are so many levels we track. We have about 57 data points to collect and it would be ideal to have a system that connects everything and that builds out workflows to simplify compliance audits and reduce human error,” said Lindsay Thivierge, director of administration at VCJC.

Vector Solutions’ professional service team is working closely with VCJC to configure Acadis to meet these needs, the company says.

While the council is still in the process of implementing the Acadis system, they have received good reviews from local agencies in Vermont.

“The feedback I’ve gotten so far is positive because they’ll be able to access records that they never really had access to before and it will make records more centralized too,” Thivierge said.

Currently, when an agency needs records for one of their officers, they must submit a request to the council. After Acadis is fully implemented, authorized users will be able to log into the Acadis portal and access their training and certification records without extra phone calls, emails, and delays.

“Acadis will allow them to just go in and look at their own employee’s file and they won’t even have to reach out to us,” said Christopher Brickell, acting executive director of VCJC. “They’ll also be able to sign up for training through Acadis as well.”

Vector Solutions says it is proud to support VCJC’s goals to reduce time spent on administrative tasks, make processes more efficient, centralize all records into one system, and improve officer training accountability and compliance.