Chamber's Christina Hellmich Graduates from FBI Citizens Leadership Academy

Congratulations to the Eastern Shore Chamber’s Director of Workforce Development Christina Hellmich for graduating from the FBI Citizens Leadership Academy.
 
"I was excited and honored to participate in the Spring 2021 Mobile Field Office Citizens Academy. I have always been intrigued with law enforcement and feel that it is so vital for us to understand the inner workings of the FBI particularly, why they do what they do. As someone who cares deeply about their community, it is important to me to be an ambassador of both federal and local law enforcement. When I have the opportunity to connect our Student Training and Exploration Program participants or our Youth Leadership students with our local and federal law enforcement, I hope that I can do my part by coordinating a casual setting so that they may foster a respectful relationship by understanding the day-to-day operations of law enforcement." - Christina Hellmich, Director of Workforce Development

The better we know our communities, the better we can protect them. The Community Relations Unit at FBI Headquarters and FBI community outreach specialists in field offices across the country create and strengthen relationships locally and nationally with minority groups, religious and civic organizations, schools, non-profits, and other entities. These partnerships have led to a host of crime prevention programs, enabling families to stay safe from fraudsters and cyber predators, businesses to protect themselves from hackers and economic espionage, schools and workplaces to safeguard against violent rampages and illegal drugs, and all citizens to become alert to potential acts of terror and extremism.
 
The six-week program included the following topics: Intelligence Analysts, Cyber/Counterintelligence, White Collar/Public Corruption, Violent Crimes and Evidence Response.
 
The mission of the FBI Citizens Academy is to foster a greater understanding of the role of federal law enforcement in the community through frank discussion and education. Candidates are nominated by FBI employees, former Citizens Academy graduates, and community leaders. Participants are selected by the special agent in charge of the local FBI field office.
 
The Eastern Shore Chamber has partnered with the FBI and the Daphne Police Department to bring the FBI’s Bridging the Gap Program to our Student Training and Exploration Program 9th graders. This program was developed to bridge the gap between our youth and our law enforcement, to foster positive relationships in our community. In addition to building relationships, the program is designed to teach our youth how to have a positive encounter with law enforcement, if ever faced with such a situation. The program consists of various mock scenarios that mirror a potential traffic stop, a home encounter, as well as a street encounter. The various scenarios have been carefully designed to show our youth both the right and wrong way of dealing with law enforcement.
 
The FBI has also been a vital part of our Youth Leadership Business Smarts Day. Students have the opportunity to engage with the FBI Mobile Field Office to better understand the career pathways within the FBI.