After two years of renovations, cross-country coordination and navigating a COVID-19 environment, TSA officers now have a new West Coast training center to call home.
On June 9, TSA celebrated the official opening of the TSA Academy West building in Las Vegas, a standalone training center located next to Harry Reid International Airport (LAS). The academy serves an essential role in officer training, preparing TSA’s newest hires for the demands of working checkpoint security.
Officer training is multileveled and requires months of security instruction with a key part of that training taking place at one of TSA’s academies.
The newest facility complements the long-established TSA Academy East in Glynco, Georgia, by serving airports in the western United States and Pacific islands.
For nearly a year, TSA Academy West worked out of a temporary office space while its permanent home was under development. The academy operated steadily throughout the pandemic while construction pushed forward, bringing formal academy training to West Coast operations.
“The TSA Academy West expands our ability to train our new officers in an airport environment and provide them hands-on experience with our latest technology,” said Administrator David Pekoske. “This is an impressive, best-in-class training facility made possible by our expert faculty and staff and our strong partnership with Harry Reid International Airport.”
When TSA officers are hired, the they undergo about three months of training and observation at their assigned airport. This period serves two purposes: understanding the environment they will be working in and gaining hands-on practice before fully committing to the position.
Once this initial phase is complete, and the officer is ready for the next steps, they are sent to a TSA Academy for basic training on either the East or West Coast, depending on their location.
With a frontline workforce of more than 50,000 employees, TSA Academy West is a necessary addition to TSA’s training capacity. The academy houses classrooms and multipurpose laboratories in more than 26,000 square feet of space. The state-of-the-art facility can train hundreds of officers in-person on a weekly basis.
The pandemic not only slowed down construction operations but also reshaped the format of the standardized training curriculum at TSA Academies. Previously, officers spent their time between classroom learning and hands-on training. The biggest feedback from officers was that they needed more time to train on the equipment.
Now, the academies’ curriculum includes a week of virtual learning. This change was adopted after seeing success from the mandated online environment in 2020. When officers arrive for their academy in-person training, with their virtual in-classroom instruction complete, they spend all their time gaining practical experience on the machinery they will be operating at the airport.
LAS and TSA continue to have a strong partnership, and the two entities collaborate to ensure the TSA officers receive the best training possible with LAS housing an authentic checkpoint training environment devoted to the academy.
“The new facility is amazing and I think it will be a great experience for new officers coming to TSA Academy West,” said Heike Doyle, a Lead Transportation Security Officer at LAS. “Being able to learn in a classroom, then put it into action in a realistic airport training checkpoint really reinforces what is being taught.”
The space gives officers easy access to a dedicated checkpoint where they can immediately apply what they have learned in their observations and testing in an active airport environment.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony represented a special moment for the agency made possible by dedication and commitment of the site staff, TSA’s Training and Development Branch and the Security and Administrative Services/Real Estate Management Branch. Representatives from around the state came to witness the historic moment, including Congresswoman Dina Titus, Representative for Nevada’s 1st District.
More exciting additions are coming in the near future, with a specialized knowledge immersion lab also opening in Las Vegas. This lab will provide advanced technical training classes for TSA’s frontline leaders.
“We often hear what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas,” said Congresswoman Susie Lee, Representative for Nevada’s 3rd District. “I hope that’s not the case for the TSA officers coming to the Academy to learn.”
Kimberlyn Pepe, TSA’s Strategic Communications & Public Affairs