The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | February 2021
Meet the NJSACOP Command & Leadership Academy Faculty
By Paul Sorrentino , Command & Leadership Academy Program Manager
This month Michael Virga , PhD . reflects on a career , the environment and the impact of the Command and Leadership Academy program .
Michael Virga , Ph . D . Township of Hamilton Police Department Command and Leadership Program Instructor mvirga @ townshipofhamilton . com
Michael Virga , Ph . D . is an 18-year law enforcement veteran for the Township of Hamilton Police Department ( Atlantic County ). He is currently assigned as a Detective Sergeant . He is an adjunct professor at Rowan University and teaches courses in Theories of Crime in Criminality and American Police . He also instructs for the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police Command & Leadership Academy ( Atlantic County ).
“ IS THIS WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR ?”: A REFLECTION By : Michael Virga , Ph . D .
If you could turn back the clock and return to the beginning of your career , would you choose the same profession ? A student of mine at a local state university posed this question to me after learning of my work and experience in law enforcement . His curiosity was kindled due to the social unrest spread nation-wide and witnessed in the summer of 2020 . He wanted to know my outlook and use the information to make a well-informed decision about entering the field of policing in America . I had to pause . My mind suddenly went into full reverse , and I began sifting through the memories of my career . The moments , the successes , the failures , the times of uncertainty … these were the images flooding my brain . Time seemed to stand still , and then as those images were fleeting away , I thought of the people .
A famous college football coach once said to his players , “ You win with people .” It ’ s true . Individual successes do not occur in isolation . At some point in our existence as human beings , we either self-improved or were forced to understand we work better together as a group . This acceptance of collaboration allowed us to become successful in securing our future as a species and to harness our environment to our own collective advantage . With that in mind , a group yearns for leadership , as it will not function effectively without guidance and direction . The challenge presented to us as leaders of groups or organizations is painting a vision and electrifying our members into action while preserving our internal principles , gazing forward to future innovation , and embracing the changing external environment .
The Command & Leadership Academy course offered by the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police ( NJSACOP ) supplies a forum for police leaders to explore leadership theories and perform a mental rehearsal of challenges thrust upon the leader during individual , group , and organizational settings . I have the honor of instructing for the Command & Leadership Academy . While reflecting on my time as an instructor and preparing for this Spring semester , I am perpetually astounded by the wealth of law enforcement experience carried into the classroom by the students and harnessed through the rigor of the program . The end result is a harvest of innovative ideas addressing deep-rooted challenges in police leadership ; only limited by the margins of our imagination .
The advantage of the curriculum is the process . As with most endeavors , focusing on time spent on the route enriches our general understanding and the end-result seems to classically fall into place . The instructional methods introduced in the coursework influence the student to think differently , alter planes of perspective , and address real life issues by establishing the pattern and acting upon them with ingenuity . Through analysis , explanation , and selection , leaders are prepared to make thoughtful decisions and are mindful about the impact it has on the multiple variables involved . When moving through an analysis or explanation , we are forced to address our perceptional filters and remove cognitive biases to observe a challenge for what it really represents . By doing so , we can artfully select solutions in the objective mindset , not subjective , to truly address an issue fairly and successfully . In law enforcement and other fields , we must always seek objectivity and explore issues without assumption and declare conclusions to be grounded in fact . In doing so , we as leaders gain credibility with our people while gaining the public trust and strengthening legitimacy .
When the novel virus clamped down on the world in March , I was a sergeant of a patrol squad . My unit , as many others across the nation , was affected by disrupted work schedules , daily changes in common operating procedure , modifications of state and local emergency orders , mandated curfews and shuttered businesses , a fearful public , and an uncertainty of how long this can be sustained . Then if that was not enough to burden , over twelve hundred miles away , a deadly police use of force episode ignited social unrest across the country calling into question police legitimacy and providing an environmental jolt calling for reform . The aftershocks of these events are presently with us and still unfolding .
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