(NY State Police Academy Museum showing uniform of the first women NY State Troopers from the 1970’s.)
This past week, Albany was honored to welcome four visitors from Kazakhstan exploring women in law enforcement. Located south of Russia, Kazakhstan was once part of the Soviet Union. It 1991, it became an independent nation.
Our visitors were particularly interested in Governor Hochul’s 30×30 pledge to increase women in law enforcement to 30% by 2030 as research shows that more women in policing leads to better community relations and less excessive force. The visitors stayed for only a few days, but they packed professional meetings, cultural activities, and shopping outings all into that time.
They began their first day in the Capital Region with a tour of the State Capitol building. That afternoon, they spoke with a group of women at the New York State Police Academy about the training and challenges facing women in policing. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the couple hours spent comparing the different countries and best practices in hiring, retaining and promoting women in the law enforcement field.
The next day brought a meeting at the FBI Field Office in Albany. Here, discussions centered around the challenges in finding a work-life balance and how the workplace facilitates that balance. After comparing parental leave in the two countries, women from both sides left with new thoughts, ideas, and potential to implement them in their own workplaces.
On their final day, visitors met with professors from the Criminal Justice Department at the Hudson Valley Community College to examine this topic from an academic standpoint. The discussion was so helpful that multiple links were exchanged after the meeting to provide further information. The visitors departed to with new ideas, souvenirs, and wonderful memories from their time in Albany.
(Pictures and names of the delegation are not available for the public for their protection, due to the sensitive nature of their work.)