SUMMIT, NJ — The New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police has awarded certification status for accredited command executive to Summit Police Lt. Michael J. Rabasca.
Certification status lasts for three years. At the end of that period, command executives and chiefs of police must show that they have maintained the training and leadership standards since their initial award of certification. Achieving command executives join a select group — only 33 percent of state police chiefs are certified, and only 29 percent of municipalities have certified command executives.
Rabasca has been with the Summit Police Department for 26 years. During the course of his career, he has steadily risen through the ranks. He has served as a patrol officer, detective, patrol sergeant, detective sergeant and patrol lieutenant. Rabasca has had past special assignments with the Union County Homicide Task Force and the Union County Narcotics Strike Force. He currently serves as the detective lieutenant.
Rabasca received his bachelor’s degree in political science and government from East Stroudsburg University. He is a 2011 graduate of the NJSACOP Police Executive Institute. In 2013, Rabasca graduated from the prestigious FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va. Through the course of his career, he has received numerous awards and commendations, including five Exceptional Duty Awards, six Honorable Service Awards, six Unit Citations and two awards of special recognition from the Summit chief of police. Rabasca is a member of the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association, New Jersey State Identification Officers Association, the Union County Municipal Investigators Association, the Morris County Investigators Association, the New Jersey Homicide Investigators Association and the FBI National Academy Associates.
The NJSACOP ACE certification program encourages New Jersey’s law enforcement executives to attain sanctioned benchmarks in pursuit of a recommended standard for police leadership that are measurable and attainable. By offering proof of these standards to NJSACOP assessors, individual police leaders can attain NJSACOP accredited chief/command executive certification status.
NJSACOP ACE Chairperson Chief Stephen Beecher said: “The ACE certification program is in keeping with the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics, the 21st Century Report and Recommendations on Policing and the state association’s declared philosophy; the certification program measures essential proofs in three areas for the ACE and ACE COP certification, and in five areas for the ACE COP advanced certification. If it is merited, NJSACOP awards individual leadership accredited status based on those appraisals. The ACE program also promotes and encourages continued education through ACE recertification program requirements.”