LOXLEY, Ala. — Follow the Yellow Brick Road” took on a whole different meaning for Loxley Police Chief Chip Cason as he spent 10 weeks at the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va. from July 10-September 17.

As part of his training, the seven mile run and obstacle course, affectionately called the “yellow brick road”, through the woods of the academy was the final fitness challenge.

Built by Marines who left yellow bricks as markers for runners to find their way, Cason ran over hilly, rough terrain, climbed over walls, ran through creeks, jumped through simulated windows, scaled rock faces with ropes, crawled under barbed wire in muddy water and maneuvered across a cargo net. He did all this in one hour and forty-five minutes but he considered that “slow”.

According to the FBI web site, “When (and if) the students complete this difficult test, they receive an actual yellow brick to memorialize their achievement. The overall fitness challenge began at the National Academy in 1981 and has evolved over the years; we started awarding yellow bricks in 1988.”

Cason, who graduated from Fairhope High School in 1991 and from the Police Academy in 1993, became a Loxley patrolman in 2001. He took over as chief in 2007 and said he was honored to be able to attend the National Academy.

“Less than one percent of law enforcement personnel get to go to the academy. There is a three to 14 year wait to get into the program and you have to be recommended and nominated by a local FBI agent and city official. You also have to be a Sergeant or above to be accepted. I am very appreciative of the mayor allowing me to go,” Cason said.

“This is the highest honor a law enforcement officer can get and I had to go through a lengthy background check to be accepted. I got premier training with people from all over the country. Really great experience,” Cason said.

Being the first person from Loxley to attend, Cason took six classes at the 385 acre training facility 36 miles from Washington, D.C. consisting of Interviewing Strategies Through Statement Analysis, Leadership for Law Enforcement, Fitness in Law Enforcement, Public Speaking, Contemporary Issues in Police and Media Relations and Seminar in Investigative Interviewing.

This 17 semester hour undergraduate course load was offered through The University of Virginia, Cason said, and they went to class from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. everyday.

With the motto “Fidelity, Bravery and Integrity”, the National Academy was started in 1935 by J. Edgar Hoover and is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. It’s mission is “to support, promote, enhance the personal and professional development of law enforcement leaders by preparing them for complex, dynamic and contemporary challenges through innovative techniques, facilitating excellence in education and research, and forging partnerships that span state and national lines,” according to the web site.

Among the six classes Cason took, Statement Analysis and Investigative Interviewing were his favorites because he got to study facial expressions and body language of the subjects.

“They hired actors to come in and do role-playing with us so we could practice is several different scenarios,” Cason explained.

According to the course description, Statement Analysis is used “as an investigative tool to gain insight into an individual’s thoughts motivations and ideas. It is also used to recognize areas of veracity and to detect areas of possible deception. Investigative Interviewing examines the psychosocial, technical and legal aspects related to investigative interviewing and interrogation in the law enforcement environment.”

“You can’t really learn anything from someone with your mouth open. You need to sit back and listen. People normally don’t like silence so someone is going to eventually say something,” Cason said.

There were law enforcement personnel from 26 countries there and Cason said it was really good to be able to learn from all of them. “Every police department has the same problems across cultural lines, just on a different scale. We just have to figure out how to deal with them.”

In addition to participating in the challenge run, Cason said they had to come up with fitness routines and learn how the body works in his P.E. class. “I learned a lot about the food pyramid what kinds of food I should be eating and the kind of exercize I should be doing.”

Following graduation, each officer has the opportunity to join the FBI National Academy Associate, the web site said.

“I really liked being able to remove myself from a work setting and gain new perspectives from law enforcement personnel. It was nice getting some time to reflect on what I was doing there,” Cason said.