About ILEEF:

The Illinois Law Enforcement Education Foundation (ILEEF) was founded in 2004 by a group of law enforcement professionals and private business people who saw a gap in the training, research and community information available to law enforcement personnel and the general public. This gap is caused by a lack of funding from national and state sources.

Mission:

                To provide education and training for law enforcement personnel;

                To research issues of importance to both law enforcement and the community; and

                To create public awareness of issues impacting law enforcement and the public.

                ILEEF depends on grants and support from companies and individuals to accomplish its mission.

Educational Training:

ILEEF promotes, encourages and fosters education in the law enforcement community of Illinois. This includes all municipal, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies. ILEEF funding allows police officers to participate in training and educational seminars, such as:

• Car Trap Awareness: Concealed Compartments Training
• Meth Labs: Identify and Dismantle
• Suicide Assessment and Intervention for First Responders Training
• Critical Incident Stress Management
• Police Response to Mental Illness
• Traumas of Law Enforcement: Disabled officers, death of an officer, suicide
• Street Crimes
• Online Child Pornography Awareness Training
• De-escalating Juvenile Aggression Training
• Leadership Development

Research:

ILEEF is responsible for the solicitation and receipt of grants, gifts, donations and contributions to support the ILEEF mission. Research on various topics of importance to law enforcement personnel is part of that mission. One recent research project has been the impact of generational differences on police. Police personnel have been able to use information found in this research to communicate more effectively with one another.

Community Awareness:

ILEEF develops public education and awareness programs for the community. One of the most popular ILEEF funded community events is Cops N Bobbers, an event that pairs police officers with at-risk youth for a day of fishing and fun. Annually nearly 100 children are provided with fishing skills as an alternative way to spend time and are encouraged not to get involved in drugs or violence.

Other community events have included digital fingerprinting, Don't Drink and drive public service announcements, Seat Belt Usage, Child Safety Seats and Crime Prevention.

A volunteer board of directors made up of four law enforcement personnel and three community members runs ILEEF.

Support ILEEF:

The Illinois Law Enforcement Education Foundation operates all its programs using public donations and grant funding. ILEEF is a 501(c)(3)charitable organization. Donations are generally tax deductible as charitable donations. Donations may be made online or by mailing a check to:

                                     ILEEF
                                     4341 Acer Grove, Suite B
                                     Springfield, IL 62711
                                     217-726-8880

                                     Email:  ileef@ileef.org

2010 Fundraiser:

In July 2010, ILEEF joined forces with Green Toyota and put together a plan to raffle off a $35,000 Toyota Tundra. Tickets were $20 each and were sold at the ILFOP Biennial Conference, and by members of the ILFOP Board of Trustees, ILFOP local lodges, and law enforcement organizations statewide.

Currently, ILEEF is developing a program to help address the problem of police officer suicide. While this problem receives little notice unless an incident of police suicide occurs, it is nonetheless a serious problem that requires a coordinated effort in its confrontation. The statewide program will provide education and training of officers; to help them identify fellow officers who may be in crisis and need assistance provide support and to further the study and research of this continuing problem. The funds generated from the ILEEF raffle were to aid in the research of police suicide and development of crisis education and training for FOP lodges and police departments.

The ILEEF Toyota Truck Raffle drew to a close on Friday October 29, 2010 with ILEEF having sold 355 raffle tickets. Unfortunately, this did not meet the minimum number of tickets that needed to be sold in order to award the Toyota Tundra truck as the raffle prize. Instead, the raffle became a 50/50 with the winner collecting $3,550 in prize money! The ILEEF staff, overseen by ILEEF Chairman Dave Nixon, drew a winner at random from the returned ticket stubs. A big congratulations goes out to Gary Catto of Belleville whose name was drawn and is the winner of the ILEEF raffle!!!

Thank you to all who participated in the ILEEF raffle!