Earlier this month, the Atoka Police Department received a gift. And while departments like theirs are always grateful for their community members who bring cookies and coffee by the station as a way of saying thank you, this gift will last a little longer than a plate of chocolate chip cookies.
The Atoka, Tennessee department was selected, out of hundreds of deserving entries from around the nation, to be the recipient of a VirTra V100® public safety training simulator. The gift was presented as part of Taskforce Santa, sponsored by VirTra and IADLEST.
According to a press release from Virtra, Taskforce Santa "provides a deserving law enforcement agency with a simulator they could not obtain otherwise. This simulator will assist Atoka PD and nearby small Tipton County agencies with various training initiatives, including de-escalation, mental health, active shooters, and crisis interventions."
The V-100® simulator is a portable, single-screen training device that reproduces real-life scenarios and situational encounters. The system comes with less-lethal tools, training pistols, and a vast library of circumstances that all accurately reflect the encounters officers and civilians may go through on any given day on the job.
It not only allows for learning, but also engagement, communications and after-action debriefs.
“This is a monumental step forward in our commitment to excellence in law enforcement training and community engagement,” said Anthony Rudolph, Chief of Atoka Police Department. “The simulator is not just a tool; it is a catalyst for positive change in how we approach policing in our community.”
VirTra CEO John Givens said that this gift will likely lead to a safer community.
“In the true spirit of Christmas, we hope this gift will keep this community and its great officers safer than they are today through realistic training.”
According to the release, there was a common theme amongst the nominations. Most pointed to a lack of resources as the primary deterrent to agencies being unable to acquire the system. But all expressed a strong desire to raise their level of training to create a safer and more effective approach to policing.
So, what was it about Atoka that led the selection committee to them?
Their nomination was "moving and heartwarming." It communicated a three-tiered approach to how it would use the training platform, highlighting:
Law Enforcement Today had the privilege of speaking with Miranda Fuller, Vice President of Marketing for VirTra, about Taskforce Santa.
We asked if the success had them thinking about continuing the Taskforce going forward.
"Oh, we were hoping it would be annual from the beginning, before we even launched it, but we just needed to kind of prove it," she told us.
She also pointed to the number of nominations that were received (114) with only one month to really push the campaign.
"So, next year we will have a much longer nomination period. And will be able to so every year going forward."
Fuller also said that she got to read every single one of them, most being heartwarming, but some being gut-wrenching as well.
So, what led to the development of the software?
"There is a problem all these agencies have, having to put in overtime, they're overworked, sleep deprived, not enough people on shifts to cover down on the grounds. On top of that, no money. They don't have time for training. They don't have time to schedule training. They don't have the money for training. They don't have the money for travel to training.
"Our mission, that we've always stated in everything we do, is to help save lives. So, it may be a widget or tool that we're giving them, but we know it's making an impact."
That mission evolved into Taskforce Santa.
"We just really wanted to do it on a larger scale and we have such a huge facility of parts and pieces and all these components. Someone asked, 'why can't we just give a simulator away?' And then they said, 'maybe we should. But how do we do it fairly? How do we do it right?
"Our mission is to put the tools in the officer's hands so they can better themselves and stay more confident and well trained. So, it evolved into Taskforce Santa, which goes hand in hand with our mission."
The value of the gift?
"The simulator is worth about $40,000. But we have partnered with IADLEST to embed the training curriculum into the software and making it absolutely free to the agencies who have our systems. They can just pull it right out, PowerPoint presentations, test manuals, the rubric. it is all there.
"And it has been third-party certified and accepted by all 50 states for continuing education credits (CECs). And that is a major bonus, especially to some of these smaller departments. We are saving many agencies a large amount of money they would have to spend to develop all of this curriculum. In some instances, we could save an agency around $700,000."
She also stated that the software is constantly evolving as new real-world scenarios arise, like the pandemic and all the chaos that created for law enforcement.
"We constantly hear from our trainers and get their feedback and input so we can make this training platform as robust and accurate as we can," she said.
And what of next year's Taskforce Santa campaign? Check out the VirTra website and stay tuned for updates on when nominations will be opened up.
Here's more about the Taskforce Santa sponsors.
VirTra (Nasdaq: VTSI) is a global provider of judgmental use of force training simulators and firearms training simulators for the law enforcement, military, educational and commercial markets. The company’s patented technologies,
software, and scenarios provide intense training for de-escalation, judgmental use-of-force, marksmanship, and related training that mimics real-world situations. VirTra’s mission is to save and improve lives worldwide through practical and highly effective virtual reality and simulator technology.
The International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST) mission is to support the innovative development of professional standards in public safety through research, development, collaboration and sharing of information, to assist states and international partners with establishing effective and defensible standards for the employment and training of public safety personnel.
The Atoka, Tennessee department was selected, out of hundreds of deserving entries from around the nation, to be the recipient of a VirTra V100® public safety training simulator. The gift was presented as part of Taskforce Santa, sponsored by VirTra and IADLEST.
According to a press release from Virtra, Taskforce Santa "provides a deserving law enforcement agency with a simulator they could not obtain otherwise. This simulator will assist Atoka PD and nearby small Tipton County agencies with various training initiatives, including de-escalation, mental health, active shooters, and crisis interventions."
The V-100® simulator is a portable, single-screen training device that reproduces real-life scenarios and situational encounters. The system comes with less-lethal tools, training pistols, and a vast library of circumstances that all accurately reflect the encounters officers and civilians may go through on any given day on the job.
It not only allows for learning, but also engagement, communications and after-action debriefs.
“This is a monumental step forward in our commitment to excellence in law enforcement training and community engagement,” said Anthony Rudolph, Chief of Atoka Police Department. “The simulator is not just a tool; it is a catalyst for positive change in how we approach policing in our community.”
VirTra CEO John Givens said that this gift will likely lead to a safer community.
“In the true spirit of Christmas, we hope this gift will keep this community and its great officers safer than they are today through realistic training.”
According to the release, there was a common theme amongst the nominations. Most pointed to a lack of resources as the primary deterrent to agencies being unable to acquire the system. But all expressed a strong desire to raise their level of training to create a safer and more effective approach to policing.
So, what was it about Atoka that led the selection committee to them?
Their nomination was "moving and heartwarming." It communicated a three-tiered approach to how it would use the training platform, highlighting:
- Community engagement and education
- Enhancement of officer safety and wellness
- Mutual aid and collaboration between themselves and smaller agencies
Law Enforcement Today had the privilege of speaking with Miranda Fuller, Vice President of Marketing for VirTra, about Taskforce Santa.
We asked if the success had them thinking about continuing the Taskforce going forward.
"Oh, we were hoping it would be annual from the beginning, before we even launched it, but we just needed to kind of prove it," she told us.
She also pointed to the number of nominations that were received (114) with only one month to really push the campaign.
"So, next year we will have a much longer nomination period. And will be able to so every year going forward."
Fuller also said that she got to read every single one of them, most being heartwarming, but some being gut-wrenching as well.
So, what led to the development of the software?
"There is a problem all these agencies have, having to put in overtime, they're overworked, sleep deprived, not enough people on shifts to cover down on the grounds. On top of that, no money. They don't have time for training. They don't have time to schedule training. They don't have the money for training. They don't have the money for travel to training.
"Our mission, that we've always stated in everything we do, is to help save lives. So, it may be a widget or tool that we're giving them, but we know it's making an impact."
That mission evolved into Taskforce Santa.
"We just really wanted to do it on a larger scale and we have such a huge facility of parts and pieces and all these components. Someone asked, 'why can't we just give a simulator away?' And then they said, 'maybe we should. But how do we do it fairly? How do we do it right?
"Our mission is to put the tools in the officer's hands so they can better themselves and stay more confident and well trained. So, it evolved into Taskforce Santa, which goes hand in hand with our mission."
The value of the gift?
"The simulator is worth about $40,000. But we have partnered with IADLEST to embed the training curriculum into the software and making it absolutely free to the agencies who have our systems. They can just pull it right out, PowerPoint presentations, test manuals, the rubric. it is all there.
"And it has been third-party certified and accepted by all 50 states for continuing education credits (CECs). And that is a major bonus, especially to some of these smaller departments. We are saving many agencies a large amount of money they would have to spend to develop all of this curriculum. In some instances, we could save an agency around $700,000."
She also stated that the software is constantly evolving as new real-world scenarios arise, like the pandemic and all the chaos that created for law enforcement.
"We constantly hear from our trainers and get their feedback and input so we can make this training platform as robust and accurate as we can," she said.
And what of next year's Taskforce Santa campaign? Check out the VirTra website and stay tuned for updates on when nominations will be opened up.
Here's more about the Taskforce Santa sponsors.
VirTra (Nasdaq: VTSI) is a global provider of judgmental use of force training simulators and firearms training simulators for the law enforcement, military, educational and commercial markets. The company’s patented technologies,
software, and scenarios provide intense training for de-escalation, judgmental use-of-force, marksmanship, and related training that mimics real-world situations. VirTra’s mission is to save and improve lives worldwide through practical and highly effective virtual reality and simulator technology.
The International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST) mission is to support the innovative development of professional standards in public safety through research, development, collaboration and sharing of information, to assist states and international partners with establishing effective and defensible standards for the employment and training of public safety personnel.
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