FBI Responds to Washington Post Article on Training

The Washington Post
1150 15th Street, N.W.
Washington , D.C. 20071

To the Editor:

As the head of training for the FBI, I am concerned that your article "Old School Academy in Post 9/11 World" presents our training program for new agents without proper context.

Training for new Special Agents is basic by design. It emphasizes core skills that all special agents of the FBI must master, regardless of their eventual area of specialization. In addition to national security, criminal investigative and intelligence collection responsibilities, intrinsic qualities of law enforcement training include forging a strong foundation in the constitutional framework of civil liberties and privacy rights, as well as ensuring comprehensive proficiencies in defensive tactics and the use of firearms. Many additional basic skills provide an essential foundation for our criminal and counterterrorism work, including interview techniques, source development, legal applications and surveillance operations.

Throughout its history the FBI has adapted its training practices to ensure that our personnel have the knowledge and skills necessary to meet emerging threats. Classified courses the reporter could not attend cover an array of terrorism investigative techniques, terrorist financing, undercover operations and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, among other topics.

We recognize that there are still areas where we need to improve. We recently established a human resources branch to help us more strategically manage human capital, including hiring, training and professional development processes for every employee.

Work continues on advanced training courses for our national security programs, and we are enhancing training curriculum for new agents and analysts that will help drive intelligence-led, rather than reactive, investigation across all of our programs.

Keith Slotter
Acting Assistant Director
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Training and Development Division