ISP Training Academy Becomes First State Police Academy to Adopt 10 Shared Principles

By Benjamin Cox on February 5, 2022 at 9:22am

NAACP President of the Illinois State Conference Teresa Haley (seated right) and Deputy Director for the Division of the Academy and Training Colonel Marcus Gipson (seated left) holding copies of the signed 10 Shared Principles.

The Illinois State Police Academy made history this week.

On Tuesday evening, the State Police Academy welcomed the Illinois chapter of the NAACP to their headquarters to become the first state police academy in the nation to adopt the 10 Shared Principles.

The 10 Shared Principles is a document created by the national NAACP that builds on equality, dignity, and respect by law enforcement with their policing, especially for communities of color.

NAACP President of the Illinois State Conference Teresa Haley and Deputy Director for the Division of the Academy and Training Colonel Marcus Gipson were on hand for the signing on Tuesday.

Gipson says that the State Police were already implementing several components of the 10 Shared Principles into their training prior to the signing: “About a year ago this past January, the ISP adopted the Shared Principles, so we have already taken the steps to live out those Principles within the agency. And to further commitment of these values, the ISP Academy is demonstrating our commitment at the entry level position because the Academy is the first step in becoming a trooper. This is a logical commitment along that path to instill the values of the agency. In addition to that, our Principles stand to build a mutual trust between law enforcement and the community. Our academy is the first academy in the nation to adopt these principles, which is a part of our curriculum through courses such as Ethics, Rules of Conduct, Cultural Diversity, Biased-Based Policing, Duty to Intervene, and other courses to build relationships and trust with the community.”

Gipson says that training on dignity and respect remains ongoing for the career of a trooper: “We instill from Day One to treat all people with dignity and respect. These principles are not only taught but are followed on a routine basis through the 29 weeks of training. We also train our current troopers [on these Principles] on an annual basis.”

Gipson says that ISP and the NAACP have had a strong relationship in recent years, and the signing of the 10 Shared Principles will further enhance that relationship and ISP’s relationship with the statewide community. He says this is yet another way the ISP Academy strives to be the top police academy in the nation.