ASSOCIATE Magazine FBINAA Q1-2025

ASSOCIATION PERSPECTIVE

Craig Petersen

G reetings! This is my first correspondence of 2025. I want to thank each of you for a wonderful 2024. As I reflect, the word that comes to mind is "grateful." I am grateful for this Association, its members, and the relationships forged during our National Academy journey. As your Association President, I have been fortunate to attend many chapter re-trainers. Each one was unique and special. As I've stated before, chapter engagement is key to member retention. Thank you to all our chapter leaders for working hard to make your chapters vibrant and active. Congratulations to the graduates of Session 292 and Session 293! Welcome to the family. I encourage you to get involved in your local chapters and remain active in the Association. Your wonderful experience at Quantico doesn’t have to end there. This Association is much like your experience at the National Academy, in that you will get out of it what you put into it. Stay connected and engaged! We have just completed our official 2025 membership drive. I cannot ever see a time when I will not renew my membership. The simple fact that I was chosen to attend the FBI National Academy is enough to motivate me to renew year after year. But our Association is so much more than that. You cannot place a value on the people I have met, the friendships I have made, the support I have received, and the unforgettable experiences and opportunities that I have been afforded because of this Association. I truly can never give back enough to this Association. For those of you who have already renewed your membership, I say thank you. Our theme this year for membership is “Back to the Network”. Even though the membership drive has concluded, members can still renew their memberships throughout the year. I ask each of you to please reach out to someone you know who is inactive and invite them to come back to the Association. Let them know they are missed, and that the Association will be stronger with their involvement. Not only does the Association have benefits for them, but the Association benefits from them being active. As you renewed your membership this year, you may have noticed that the membership categories have changed a bit. We have tried to simplify it as we had too many options, and it was confusing. This year you saw Category 1: Working (all employed professionals), Category 2: Retired (not employed), and Category 3: International (those who attended from another county and reside outside the U.S. and Canada). Let me provide you with one basic example that helps to explain the reason for the change. I am retired from law enforcement, but I am working in the Private Sector as a second career. Before this change, I could choose Sworn or Retired. I am not sworn nor am I fully retired. This new option will allow me to choose “Working” and allow me to pay the full dues amount. My company will pay the full dues, so why not do that and fully support the Association? The new categories will allow those who are retired to use their discretion when they renew. If you have any questions about this, please feel free to contact the National Office or myself. Now that you have renewed your membership, I encourage you to get involved in your local chapters. You each have talents

and experience that will enhance your chapter and make it stronger. Please consider volunteering to serve as an area representative, serving on a committee, or volunteering to assist at a chapter conference. Many opportunities await. Unfortunately, the Association may face challenges in 2025 due to potential FBI budget cuts. These cuts could impact the National Academy program, possibly reducing class sizes or eliminating classes. We have proactively engaged congressional leaders and FBI leadership on this issue. As a Board, we prepared a letter to share with our Senators and members of Congress. We shared this letter with our chapter leaders and our members to make them aware of the potential negative impact of these budget decisions. We have also engaged in dialogue with many in senior leadership positions at the Bureau including Director Wray before his departure. We will engage in dialogue with the new bureau leadership as well. If the new classes are affected, we could potentially lose up to 1,000 new members of the Association. It is more important than ever to renew memberships and bring back former members to keep the Association healthy. While inflation has impacted us, the National Board chose not to raise dues for 2025 - part of that strategy is the ability to bring back former members. So, again, I ask for your assistance. Please reach out to at least one inactive member and bring them back to the Association. Lastly, our National Team and the Maryland-Delaware Chapter continue to prepare for the 2025 National Annual Training Conference. The conference will take place August 2-5 in Baltimore Maryland. The Inner Harbor area where the conference will take place, is very walkable and family-friendly. There are many family friendly activities such as the National Aquarium, Fort McHenry, Fell’s Point, museums, shopping, and restaurants to name a few. The co-host chapter is planning some fantastic events for our members as well. I hope you will join us; I look forward to seeing you there.

God bless,

Craig Petersen 2024-2025 FBINAA President NA Session 245

4 FBINAA.ORG | Q1 2025