Dykes graduates from special FBI law enforcement academy

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West Goshen Police Chief Joseph Gleason, Chester County Chief Detective Kevin Dykes, and District Attorney Tom Hogan.

The Chester County District Attorney’s Office announced that Kevin Dykes, Chief of the Chester County Detectives, recently returned to Chester County after attending and graduating from the illustrious Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy (the “FBI NA”).

The FBI NA is an internationally recognized training program for top law enforcement officers around the world.  Participation is by invitation only.  Those selected to attend include leaders of state and local police departments, military organizations, and both federal and international law enforcement agencies.

“Attending the FBI National Academy was a valuable and rewarding experience,” Dykes said in a statement. “I had the opportunity to work with and learn from top-flight police leadership from around the world. This program also reinforced for me how lucky we are to have strong law enforcement in Chester County, supported by our citizens and political leaders.”

West Goshen Police Chief Joe Gleason, who is the former President of the Eastern Pennsylvania chapter of the FBI NA, added, “The FBI NA is regarded as the premier law enforcement training organization in the world for executive level law enforcement. Only 1% of all law enforcement officers in the world are chosen to attend, so to have Chief Dykes graduate from the 268th session of the NA is an honor and a privilege for him, both personally and professionally.  Chester County has quite a few graduates from the NA, which only proves that Chester County law enforcement has some of the most highly trained and professional police officers in the nation.”

As an FBI National Academy student, Chief Dykes spent three months on a Marine Corps base in Quantico living with and training beside law enforcement leaders from across the United States and over 150 international partner nations. The FBI NA curriculum featured a variety of courses, including: leadership, cyber threat security, law enforcement communication, other technical topics, and physical fitness. As a graduate, Chief Dykes now joins the ranks of over 47,000 law enforcement officers who have completed the FBI NA program since its inaugural class in 1935.

A typical day at the FBI NA is as follows. Daily classes begin at 7:30 AM and continue through the lunch hour. Physical fitness training and challenges are included with the coursework 3-4 times a week. Academy students eat lunch together before returning to class, which concludes daily at 5:00 PM. Students then attend evening sessions where speakers from around the world present on various law enforcement issues. When the day is done, students retire to shared living quarters, where they can study, work on term papers, or collaborate with fellow law enforcement officers.

After weeks of study and training, the program culminates with the infamous 6.1 mile obstacle course called the “Yellow Brick Road,” originally designed for the Marine Corps. The Yellow Brick Road requires competitors to climb over walls, run though creeks, jump through windows, scale rock faces, crawl under barbed wire through mud, and other challenges. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qkj3HtsrXnE.

Upon completion of the obstacle course, as well as all academic coursework, FBI NA graduates are given their own yellow bricks, commemorating the lifelong friendships and experiences they have gained along the way. Chief Dykes earned his brick by completing the Yellow Brick Road.

After 36 years in law enforcement, Chief Kevin Dykes has no shortage of his own training or experience. Having served the Commonwealth for 20 years with the Pennsylvania State Police, Chief Dykes served first as a Trooper, and then was elevated to the rank of Corporal. Following his tenure with the State Police, Chief Dykes further served the citizens of Chester County as a County Detective beginning in 2002. By 2012, he attained the rank of Lieutenant, and he was eventually appointed to take the helm as Chief of the Chester County Detectives in 2016. The Chester County Detectives are the investigative arm of the District Attorney’s Office.

District Attorney Tom Hogan stated, “The FBI National Academy gave Chief Dykes an invaluable opportunity to interact with the best of law enforcement from around the nation and world. Part of strong leadership is being able to recognize and adopt good ideas from other leaders. The Chester County Detectives appreciate the hard work and leadership demonstrated by the FBI in running this program, bringing together police leaders to collaborate and innovate.”

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