NPD Lieutenant Attends FBI Academy

For Management Training

By Andrew Gorosko

Lieutenant George Sinko, one of the five members of the Newtown Police Department’s command staff, recently returned from a ten-week executive leadership training program at the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va.

“It was the highlight of my career,” Lt Sinko said of the rigorous program which is keyed to advancing the personal and professional development of law enforcement supervisors.

Opportunities for local police to attend the program are rare, with only three other Newtown officers having attended the academy since the town police department was formed in 1971. Others who have attended are Captain Joe Rios, former police chief Michael DeJoseph, and former police captain Owen Carney.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe sought resumes from each of the three current lieutenants, after which he selected Lt Sinko for the FBI training program. That selection was subject to approval by the FBI, which then endorsed having Lt Sinko attend.

As a lieutenant, Mr Sinko, 48, who has been a town police officer for 23 years, supervises the department’s patrol division, overseeing the patrol sergeants. He also oversees the department’s traffic enforcement unit and organizes special events for the department.

Lt Sinko progressed from the rank of sergeant to lieutenant in 2002, when he filled the lieutenant’s vacancy created by the retirement of David Lydem.

Academy

“It was a lot of work…It was a busy ten weeks,” Lt Sinko said, explaining that the FBI National Academy program provides both academic and physical fitness training for participants.

“Fitness is a core requirement,” he said, noting that regardless of what other courses academy members take, they must participate in the FBI’s physical fitness program.

A direct benefit of the physical fitness program was his losing 20 pounds of body weight, Lt Sinko said. He added that he now has an improved sense of physical well-being and is continuing to run in order to stay fit.

Through his academy studies, Lt Sinko gained 17 college-level course credits. The academy is affiliated with the University of Virginia.

A 1987 graduate of Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven, Lt Sinko has a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

The FBI National Academy has excellent instructors, many of whom are FBI agents, he said. The teachers are very knowledgeable, dynamic, and accommodating, he said.

Lt Sinko was one of 264 people who graduated from the academy, which the FBI conducts four times a year.

“One of the most invaluable things you get is the networking contacts,” he said, noting the many people whom he met at the academy.

Those attending the academy session were from 49 states, the District of Columbia, 24 countries, three military organizations, and four federal civilian organizations. On average, those attending the academy have 19 years of law enforcement experience.

 

Subject Matter

Besides the mandatory health/fitness course, Lt Sinko selected five courses to attend from among the numerous courses offered at the academy.

A course on leadership in law enforcement was especially motivating, he said. In such sessions, academy members discussed their experiences in law enforcement.

Another course detailed the best ways for police to manage law enforcement activity at “death scenes,” in situations where homicides have occurred.

A course known as “interview analysis techniques” described how police can best analyze written statements to detect instances of deception.

Another course provided instruction on public speaking and news media relations.

Also, the lieutenant learned about labor law, as it affects employees in the workplace.

After joining the police department in 1989, Mr Sinko started work as a patrolman. He then worked for the Statewide Narcotics Task Force. He later became the police department’s youth officer, after which he became a patrol sergeant. He later worked as a detective sergeant. He then became the department’s administrative lieutenant, and he now oversees the patrol/operations aspects of the organization.

Commenting on Lt Sinko’s attending the FBI National Academy, Chief Kehoe said, “I am excited that we have another member of the agency who has received a high level of leadership and managerial training.  We look forward to utilizing Lt Sinko's unique skill sets, which were honed at the national academy, to enhance our agency.”

“Lt. Sinko now joins a fraternity of law enforcement professionals nationally and internationally who can be contacted at a moment’s notice to assist us, when and if the need should occur,” Chief Kehoe said. 

Before Lt Sinko, the last current member of the police department to receive the FBI training was Capt Rios, who studied at the academy in 2005. The FBI National Academy opened in 1935.