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The Army released its "Training for Full Spectrum Operations" field manual in December 2008. A few short months later, work had already begun on revisions. The increasingly complex battlefield is prompting the service to rethink the way it trains for war. Troops can find themselves conducting offensive operations, defending against an attack or carrying out stability operations - building schools, meeting with local tribal leaders to help improve citizens' conditions - all in the course of one day. "It's not specifically that you conduct offense, you conduct defense, then you conduct stability operations," said Lt. Gen. Thomas Miller, commanding general of the First Army, Fort Gillem, Ga. "The approach is that those are always intermingled together … It's just the dynamic nature of the fight."

The Federal Aviation Administration's air traffic controller training program overran costs four years in a row because it didn't properly outline training needs before issuing the program contract, a Dec. 18 Transportation Department inspector general report says. The overruns totaled about $89 million. In 2008, the FAA began developing the Air Traffic Control Optimum Training Solution meant to train thousands of new controllers the agency intends to hire by 2021.

Car accidents and fires are obvious situations that may require a call to 911. For the most part, doing so does not increase risk for the caller. However, in cases of domestic abuse or abduction, calling 911 can put the victim in grave danger. In these situations, new technology that allows people to silently text to 911 can be life-saving. The National 911 Office is driving the planning and adoption of the text-to-911 service to make communicating with emergency services more dynamic. This begins the process of increasing accessibility and a push for public safety answering points (PSAP) to begin Next Generation 911 (NG911) implementation. Text-to-911 is an interim step between current systems used in PSAPs and NG911 implementation. While there is a national push to upgrade, it is a lengthy and expensive process that will initially limit the availability of the service.

Law enforcement agencies across the U.S. are still experiencing the effects of a recovering economy. Lowered state funding continues to slash local budgets, compelling many departments to lay off officers. Agencies are faced with the choice to have their remaining officers focus on law enforcement or administrative duties, the former being the priority. As a result, they may look to engage people who are not sworn officers to complete critical administrative tasks. The concept of civilianization is not a new one, but the shift toward civilianization that occurred near the end of the 20th century was substantial. In 1965, the ratio of sworn officers to civilians employed by law enforcement agencies was 8.3:1, and in 1995 the ratio was 2.6:1. In general, civilians have been employed to a greater extent in large metropolitan police departments than small departments. They are employed more in the west than the east, and also are employed in greater proportions in city and county departments than in state agencies. Increasing civilian employment in law enforcement may help organizations address the diminished number of sworn officers. Civilianization of police departments offers many advantages and disadvantages for organizations that should be reviewed before making this transition.

May there never ever be another Sandy Hook. However, if the situation arises where first responders need to address an active shooter, we want them to be ready. After taking part in Urban Shield, the hope is all tactical teams will use radio communications effectively - allowing connected teachers and tactical teams to enable the fastest response possible to keep students safe.