see also: in May 2008:   Deputy Chief of the Border Patrol Announces State of the Agency   CBP Celebrates Significant Occasions at Advanced Training Center in West Virginia   CBP to Issue New Frequent Traveler Cards   Ecstasy and Methamphetamine Seized at Ambassador Bridge   CBP Races to Secure NASCAR’s Monster Mile   CBP Air and Marine Agents Interdict Migrants in Florida at the Start of Memorial Day Weekend   Border Patrol Agents Rescue 51 Illegal Aliens from Tractor Trailer ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers

contacts for this news release

Who:	U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner W. Ralph Basham and Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-WV), along with Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Training and Development Thomas J. Walters and invited guests.
What:	Ribbon cutting for the Firing Range Complex and ground breaking for the Leadership Academy, the newest components of the 124-acre Advanced Training Center (ATC).
When:	Friday, May 30, 2008, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Where:	CBP Advanced Training Center, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Why:	The Ceremony is an opportunity to see first-hand, the Firing Range Complex that features five different ranges designed for rifles and handguns, additional classrooms, weapon cleaning areas, and firing range control rooms. The Leadership Academy will provide a full range of training for officers and agents and the more than 600 new supervisors CBP adds to its ranks each year.

Background:
The Advanced Training Center is designed to serve the specialized needs of CBP. Officially opened in August 2005, the ATC provides learning environments that emulate the gamut of CBP’s operating environments and includes facilities that are identical to the land, sea, and air ports of entry, as well as open areas and water features found along the border between the ports of entry. Owned and operated by the Office of Training and Development, the center provides firearms and intermediate force training, and advanced training to CBP employees throughout the agency.

Interested media must RSVP by Thursday, May 29, 2008. Contact Tara Dunlop at (202) 344-2497.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.