A Western Illinois University School of Law Enforcement professor and director of the WIU Homeland Security Research Program will be a part of the training program this month for over 60 new incoming Illinois police chiefs through the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board Executive Institute.

Dean Alexander, who is recognized internationally as a terrorism expert, will present on anti-government movements and extremists, traditional hate groups and hate-based extremist groups and movements, foreign-aligned ideologies, religiously-motivated extremists/terrorists, fringe movements, single-issue extremists and other politically-aligned extremists.

“As part of this training presentation, I will be differentiating between response activities internal to the police department, as well as efforts (both cooperative and counterterror in nature) that can be centered on the public,” Alexander explained.

Alexander is also currently researching the Q’Anon movement, a topic he has been following for several years. He has taught about this group in his LEJA classes, and notes that this movement is gaining momentum around the globe.

In Spring 2019, Alexander published a groundbreaking book, “Family Terror Networks,” that addresses the phenomenon of family-linked terrorism (e.g., ISIS families, the Boston Marathon bombers and the San Bernardino terrorists) and its implications, and provides insight into detecting and undermining this increasingly prominent feature of extremism globally.

Alexander has published three other books on terrorism, including: “The Islamic State: Combating the Caliphate Without Borders,” “Business Confronts Terrorism,” and “Terrorism and Business.” He has trained law enforcement and military personnel in the United States and abroad on terrorism and counterterrorism issues at NATO’s Center of Excellence Defense Against Terrorism (Turkey), Illinois Statewide Terrorism and Intelligence Center and Oregon Fusion Center. His insights on terrorism have been featured in domestic and international media, among them: the “Washington Post,” “Voice of America,” “Tribune de Genève,” and “NHK.”

Alexander can be reached at DC-Alexander@wiu.edu.

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Sean Leary Director of Digital Media

Sean Leary is an author, director, artist, musician, producer and entrepreneur who has been writing professionally since debuting at age 11 in the pages of the Comics Buyers Guide. An honors graduate of the University of Southern California masters program, he has written over 50 books including the best-sellers The Arimathean, Every Number is Lucky to Someone and We Are All Characters.