After completing a selective hiring process and an intensive homeland security training program, agents and officers working in Omaha will have the opportunity to demonstrate their qualified skills and abilities as they protect the life and liberty of all the city’s residents. Homeland security careers in Omaha are concentrated in locally-based agencies such as:
- Nebraska Joint Terrorism Task Force
- Omaha Police Department
- Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council
- FBI Field Intelligence Group and Field Office
- Department of Homeland Security’s Protective Security Advisory
- Nebraska IRS Criminal Investigation
- Douglas County Sheriff’s Department
These agencies recognize they are much more effective when they work together, and it is therefore critical that those seeking homeland security jobs in Omaha must be able to work as part of a team. Coordination played a key role in two recent local homeland security operations.
Degrees and Training in Homeland Security
Qualified and capable individuals are needed to make up the future homeland security teams in Omaha. Having the right homeland security certification is essential, and prospective officers and agents should research their desired positions to see what is required. Positions in the field commonly require some form of education, starting with an undergraduate Homeland Security Certificate. This is generally obtained from a 15-credit hour class offered online for all Omaha residents, and includes courses in:
- Homeland Security and Business
- Terrorism in Today’s World
- Fundamentals of Homeland Security
Graduate certification courses can be completed online in less than 24 months and include:
- Emergency Management and Public Health
- Advanced Certificate in Homeland Security Management
- Graduate Certificate in Security Intelligence
There are also AA/AS and BA/BS degree programs open for Omaha residents online. These degrees in homeland security include course study in:
- Introduction to Homeland Security 101
- Emergency Management 201
- Legal and Ethical Issues in Homeland Security 225
- Critical Infrastructure Protection 301
- Intelligence Process 401
- Mitigation and Disaster Recovery 461
Candidates will find other associate and bachelor degree programs that transfer into homeland security jobs at state and private institutions of higher education throughout Nebraska. If a prospective student has a high school diploma or GED he or she may apply for programs in:
- Information Technology
- Social Sciences
- Business
- Public Health
- Law Enforcement
Taking the Traffickers Off of Omaha’s Streets
A recent multi-agency operation involving 180 law enforcement officers nabbed 12 suspects in Omaha in conjunction with the Greater Omaha Safe Streets Task Force. The arrests were made on narcotics charges and weapons violations of alleged members of the Must Be Criminal branch of the violent Sureños XIII international narcotics gang known for drug trafficking. At the end of the operation the Omaha Police Chief stated that the teamwork exhibited between the involved agencies shows the positive community impact made possible by such cooperation. Three municipal police departments and several state and federal agencies participated in the takedown.
Undercover agents recently broke up an Omaha sex trafficking racket that used a popular website to market escorts and prostitution services. A man and woman were arrested in a sting operation on charges including conspiracy to commit sex trafficking in an operation that saw them work together to provide facilities, transportation, and organizational leadership for the prostitution scheme. The man allegedly lured vulnerable young women into the operation with promises of wealth, and if that did not work he would take their identification, physically assault, and threaten the victims. The website used to advertise the operation is under investigation after being linked to four other brutal cases in another city. Homeland security officers credit this recent bust as saving the futures of countless young women and bringing two deserving criminals to jail.