Wearing the Badge Behind Bars: Correction Wellness- Lafayette

Wearing the Badge Behind Bars: Stress, Ethics, and Resilience in Corrections

Correctional officers face one of the most demanding and high-risk roles in law enforcement. Daily exposure to danger, cumulative stress, trauma, ethical challenges, and inmate-driven threats can significantly impact officer health, performance, family life, and career longevity.

This full-day class addresses the real-world pressures of working behind the walls and provides practical tools to help officers recognize stress, manage trauma, strengthen ethical decision-making, and build long-term resilience. The course explores the personal and organizational “cost of the job” while emphasizing officer safety, wellness, and professional integrity.

Participants will examine how stress and trauma manifest on and off duty, identify suicide risk factors, review de-escalation strategies, and discuss lessons learned from real correctional cases. The course also highlights the role of leadership and peer support in maintaining healthy, effective correctional environments.

Training Force USA is proud to partner with the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, which is hosting this onsite class and supporting regional law enforcement training excellence.

Participants Will Gain:

• Recognition of stress, trauma, and PTSD indicators
• Awareness of correctional officer suicide risk factors and prevention strategies
• Practical de-escalation skills: knowing when to talk and when to listen
• Insight into ethical challenges and boundary issues within correctional settings
• Stress-management strategies to build resilience and career longevity
• Lessons learned from real-world correctional safety cases

Instructor:

Thomas Gillan is a Certified Law Enforcement Trainer and Criminal Justice/Public Safety Instructor with extensive experience developing and delivering educational programs nationwide.

He has written and presented training curricula for Training Force USA, the Florida Sheriff’s Association, the Florida Attorney General’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Florida Department of Corrections, the FBI National Academy, and numerous colleges, universities, hospitals, and local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies across the country.

Thomas has received multiple awards from law enforcement agencies throughout Florida and has been recognized by federal agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Attorney’s Office, United States Marshal Service, Federal Air Marshals, Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the Department of Homeland Security.

ARGET AUDIENCE: All members of the criminal justice and legal community. Training is especially valuable for all first-line supervisors in the criminal justice field.

DATES & TIMES:

Wednesday, June 17, 2026 - 9:00am until 5:00pm

COST: $224.00 per person ($3 registration fee plus credit card fee if applicable)

LOCATION:

Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office

1825 West Willow St.

Scott, LA 70583

PAYMENT OPTIONS:

• Check made payable to:

TRAINING FORCE USA, 7769 McClure Dr, Tallahassee, FL 32312

• Purchase Order

• Credit Card payment made online

Cancellations and Substitutions:

• Upon submission of this registration, participants are responsible for payment of this course. Please note that if you do not attend, you are still responsible for payment.

• Substitutions may be made at any time by phone, e-mail or online at the registration site.

In the event minimum enrollment is not met to support instructor travel, the class will be transitioned to a live online format so all registered participants can still attend.

QUESTIONS: Phone: 850-556-4544 | E-mail: will@trainingforceusa.com

WWW.TRAININGFORCEUSA.COM