Truckers Against Trafficking efforts
MVE officers interact daily with drivers during the
normal course of business and also take part in special outreach programs to
educate drivers on how to spot signs of human trafficking and what to do if a
driver suspects this type of activity. Partnering
with Truckers Against Trafficking, a national nonprofit with the mission of raising
awareness of human trafficking, the Iowa DOT’s MVE officer outreach to
professional drivers has become a national model for other enforcement to
follow.
Truckers Against Trafficking - 2018 Annual Report
Do you need help and looking for resources? Please go to https://iowadot.gov/endslavery
MVE's Readers are Leaders Program
Getting out into the communities and fostering relationships begins young. In the last few years, several MVE officers have taken their lunch hour to go to local schools and read to youngsters. For many kids, this is their first up-close-and-personal conversation with a person in uniform. Not only is the officer there to read, they also answer questions the kids might have about being a law enforcement officer.
Blue Courage
To protect and serve. This motto, first adopted by the Los Angeles Police Department in 1955, is now a generally recognized mantra for law enforcement. Policing is a necessary, sometimes extremely challenging, undertaking. Those challenges, especially the mental and emotional aspects of the job, can take a toll on an officer.
A new program, Blue Courage, was recently brought to the Iowa DOT’s MVE unit. This two-day training starts a process to focus on the human development of a police officer. It draws on relevant, proven literature and research on human effectiveness, positive psychology, leadership development, and neuroscience. The goal is personal and cultural transformation through institutionalizing the heart set, mindset, skill set, and tool set of our officers.
Law enforcement officers have long been trained on a particular skill set, but that training often left out the human side – the heart set and mind set. Blue Courage’s holistic approach to law enforcement challenges conventional wisdom of the tough-as-nails officer, but comes at a time when law enforcement’s connection to the public they serve is eroding. Blue Courage teaches MVE officers to show their humanity, have fun, and be part of the community.
MVE Foundation
Members of MVE, outside their work and official duties, have formed a nonprofit foundation known as the MVE Foundation. The mission of the MVE Foundation is to “positively impact the communities in which MVE proudly serves and protects.” The MVE Foundation’s current capital goal is to raise funds to assist the Puppy Jake Foundation with providing service dogs for military veterans. In addition the Foundation has provided Thanksgiving meals for families throughout the state. They also were able to provide funds for an elementary school student needing glasses.
Special Olympics
For more than 20 years, the MVE officers have proudly supported Special Olympics Iowa. Each year a large contingent of officers use their time off to carry the torch in the Iowa Law Enforcement Torch Run, Polar Plunges® and Cop on Top® events, and other activities supporting the organization.