On May 13, 2026, ARCS Atlanta members and guests went on one of the most fascinating and inspiring field trips ever! Organized and arranged by Mary Watson’s husband, Tom, we toured the new Atlanta Public Safety Training Center and heard from Atlanta Police Department experts on the new technology at the center. We watched in real time as a drone was dispatched to an active 911 call and arrived at the scene in just over one minute. With the help of a bus to cover the massive campus, we toured the beautiful new horse barn, the shooting range, the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course, the skid pad and the vehicle skills pad. We saw the Class A burn building, the training fire station, complete with a moving ambulance and human dummies, and the Real-World Training Center with its hotel, convenience store, house, and bar which provide life-like practice for emergency situations.
We learned about the exemplary work of the Atlanta Police Foundation which brings together private sector leaders from the business and philanthropic communities to support public safety initiatives designed to make Atlanta the safest large city in the nation. Its unique public sector/private sector partnership is focused on reducing crime and ensuring that Atlanta’s law enforcement professionals have the best resources, incentives, and training to sustain a highly motivated police force that meets the demands of 21st-century policing.
Many thanks to all the experts at the Public Safety Training Center and to Tom Watson for his invaluable help in coordinating this memorable event.
