I had the pleasure of attending the 2025 FBI Citizens Academy at the Norfolk Field Office. My time at the academy began when fellow author and friend Allie Marie posted on Facebook that the FBI was accepting applications for their 2025 session in October 2024. I was immediately interested.
The Citizens Academy
is an engaging six-to-eight-week program that gives business, religious, civic,
and community leaders an inside look at the FBI. Classes meet in the evening at
the FBI field office. The mission of the FBI Citizens Academy is to foster a
great understanding of the role of federal law enforcement in the community
through frank discussion and education.
FBI employees,
former Citizens Academy graduates, and community leaders nominate candidates.
Participants are selected by the special agent in charge of the local FBI field
office.
The
application process began with completing a short form on the FBI website,
where you provide your general information and a brief statement of why you are
a good candidate for the class. Next, you wait for an email congratulating you
for making it through the first phase of the selection process. (I assume you
would receive an email saying you weren’t selected if you didn’t make the cut,
as the class size is limited to thirty participants.) The congratulatory email includes
a five-page background check application and information on the fingerprint
process, which requires submittal by a set deadline. The wait was about thirty
days, give or take a few. I received the final confirmation email that I was
accepted. Then the fun began!
Entering the
FBI Campus
When you
arrive at the Norfolk Field office, the building is somewhat intimidating, with
the twelve-foot-high black wrought iron fence surrounding it. You enter the security
building, where you must give your state or government-issued ID to the
security guard, place all personal items in a grey bin, while the guard looks
over your ID and ensures you are on an authorized list. Next, you are asked if you
have any weapons, explosives, or electronic devices that you better not have,
or you will be denied entry. You are then directed to stand before a walk-through
metal detector until another guard tells you to proceed. It never failed, I always
set it off and had to stand facing with my back to the guard with my arms raised
to shoulder height and palms facing down to be checked with a metal detection wand.
I felt like I was at the airport going on a trip! Next, we proceeded out the
back door to the main building to be escorted to the conference room.
Classroom
Presentations
Each class began
with dinner provided by the FBI Citizens Academy Alumni Association (FBICAAA). We
enjoyed meals from restaurants such as Mission BBQ, Jimmy John's, and local
businesses while socializing and building relationships with classmates, agents,
and support staff. After dinner, each session started promptly at six p.m. with
announcements and a welcome from the Special Agent in Charge, who also briefly
explained the agenda for the evening. We were given a handbook with thirty-seven
pages of information, including the history of the FBI and three pages of
common FBI acronyms, which leads one to believe there are many more. The
presentations were informative and fun. The agents provided abundant unclassified
and detailed information about how the FBI operates, its history, the myths and
truths, the Norfolk Field office, the day-to-day, which isn’t necessarily day-to-day,
as they all have multiple duties. For instance, an agent assigned to the Cyber
Crimes Division may also be part of the Evidence Response Team.
Personnel
Stats
The FBI
Headquarters is in Washington, DC, with fifty-five field offices across the United
States and Puerto Rico. Many field offices are subdivided to include resident agencies
with jurisdiction over a specific area. The most prominent field offices are in Los Angeles,
New York, and Washington, DC. There are legal attaché offices known as legats overseas.
These offices are usually in American embassies. The FBI Norfolk Field Office
is the third smallest of all field offices. It has one resident agency, the Peninsula
Resident Agency, in Newport News, VA. The Norfolk Field office covers Hampton Roads,
Williamsburg, Yorktown, Jamestown, Franklin-Southampton, Suffolk, Smithfield, and
the Eastern Shore. The Norfolk Field Office opened on December 15, 1941, one
week after the U.S. entered World War II. Due to the significant naval presence
in the Hampton Roads area, the office focused on national security issues such
as sabotage and espionage.
There are approximately
38,000 FBI personnel worldwide.:
·
37% - Special Agents
·
63% - Professional Staff
o
13% - Intelligence Analysts
o
7% - Staff Operation Specialists
The FBI works
closely with police departments, the Naval Criminal Investigative Services
(NCIS), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), fire departments, the Coast Guard,
the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and other agencies while investigating
cases.
Mission,
Vision, Priorities
“The FBI's
mission is to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the
United States. Its vision is to stay ahead of the threat. The FBI is an
intelligence-driven, threat-focused national security organization with intelligence
and law enforcement responsibilities. Their Priorities are to focus on threats
that challenge the foundations of American society or involve dangers too large
or complex for any local or state authority to handle alone. In executing the priorities,
the FBI, as a national security and law enforcement organization, will produce
and use intelligence to protect the nation from threats and bring to justice
those violating the law.”
The FBI has
jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 federal laws. The major national
security priorities are counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and cybercrime.
Then there are Criminal Priorities, including Public Corruption, White Collar
crime, Civil Rights, Organized Crimes, and Violent Crimes.
Case Discussions
The Special Agents
took us on a journey through a few of their resolved cases from the beginning to
the end. The cases involved attempted solicitation of a minor and human
trafficking; the take down of a local gang; an espionage case, and a fraud
case. The interactive presentations allowed us to analyze the evidence presented.
Then we collaborated as a class to determine the outcome. I had heard and read
about most of the cases in prior years, so it was fascinating to get the inside
scoop on what really occurred, not just what was reported in the news,
how the FBI was involved, watched interrogation interviews, surveillance video,
taped confessions, etc. At each presentation, the Agents emphasized that the FBI
TV shows do not represent how the FBI operates! Cases can take months to
resolve, although some are closed quickly. And they don’t storm into buildings
or homes for every case they investigate. I would like to share more details,
but I don’t want the FBI showing up at my door! We were instructed not to share
specifics about the cases.
Hands On
Fun
One session
was dedicated to touring certain areas of the building. We were split up into three
groups. My group went to the Firearms Training System (FATS) room first. It was
a simulator on a big screen with different scenarios of you encountering situations
where you observe the scene playing before you. You must make split decisions on
who the threat is and shoot at the screen until there is no longer a threat. It
felt like you were a part of the scenario, and I was a bit nervous. I didn’t do
so well. I waited too long to fire the laser gun.
Next, the group
went to the Gun Vault. This is the room where they store weapons they no longer
use. The agent explained the gun type and the specifics of several of them and
passed them around the room so we could see the details up close and get a feel
of the weight of each one. There was a wide variety of guns, some I had heard
of but hadn’t seen.
Our last stop
was in the Evidence Response Team (ERT) area. ERT is responsible for working
with other law enforcement agencies to gather evidence at crime scenes and
transport it to the Field Office for processing. We made a cast of a shoe print
just like they do on the true crime shows! We were also shown the various techniques
they use in the finger collection process. I asked if any surfaces they couldn’t
obtain a good lift from. They said they can lift a print from any surface. They
must utilize the best method for the surface type. They demonstrated fluid
detection with luminal and various black and blue lights. They have a heavy-duty
machine for checking larger areas, but it’s heavy and a bit cumbersome to maneuver.
We headed outdoors to the ERT trucks. It was phenomenal to see all of its features.
It carries every supply imaginable. There were built-in generators and floodlights
for when they process a scene at night or in a dimly lit area. The ERT vehicle
was so organized that even the ladders had special compartments.
The SWAT Experience
The last day was dedicated to an FBI Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) presentation. It took place at the firearms range. After a brief but informative presentation, the SWAT team performed two demonstrations. The first was how they serve warrants on a person who violated a federal law in some capacity. They first used a drone for surveillance. Then they went in to ensure the building was clear. The next demonstration was of a suspected hostage situation. They yelled FBI, identifying themselves, then threw flashbangs in the building. Next, they went in, fired a few shots, and cleared the building. It was intriguing to see how every move they made was precise and how they utilized nonverbal signals to communicate.
After the demonstrations,
their tactical gear was displayed for us. The SWAT agents explained what each
item was and what it is used for. The gear is hefty, from the head protection
to the body shield they carry. You must be in excellent shape and strong to wear
it all.
Next, we had
target practice using four different firearms. An MP5, a Glock, a Tommy Gun,
and an M4 SWAT Rifle. I got several bullseyes with the MP5 and Tommy Gun. Having
agents on the FBI SWAT Team tell you how great you did at the range made my
day!
Graduation
The graduation
was bittersweet. It was great to have completed the academy, but a part of me
was sad it had to end. The ceremony started with the Special Agent in Charge thanking
everyone for their commitment to attend the eight-week program. He reiterated that
the FBI does the Citizens Academy to increase awareness about the FBI,
strengthen relationships, and improve understanding between the FBI and the communities
it serves. We received our certificates and took pictures.
I met some
wonderful people. All the FBI personnel were pleasant and accommodating. They had
us laughing a lot. I admire their dedication to the bureau and the communities they
serve.
I am grateful to
have had the opportunity to participate in such a program. I highly recommend
it to anyone interested in attending.
Have you attended Citizens Academies like the FBI, Police, Fire Department, etc.? If so, what prompted you to participate? Are you interested in participating in any?
https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/norfolk/community-outreach
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