Our school is one of the oldest and longest running TEMS programs in the United States. It began in Minneapolis in 1987 taking the form of "quarterly co-trainings." These were one or two-day sessions for police tactical teams who had an EMT police officer or a team that wished to have a medical support officer attached to it. These trainings focused on bringing law enforcement and EMS together not just geographically but functionally as well.

	One of our cadre works with operators in discovering ways to safely go to the ground, defend and dominate when you are on the ground, and effectively recover to your feet.
Our alumni continually report that the relationships they make during our brief week together last for years and cross hundreds or thousands of miles. You will have the opportunity to work with and learn from interesting and talented folks from all over the world.

As the word spread, more emergency medical providers became interested in the concept. In 1989 we created a "Tactical BTLS" program that combined medical assessment and treatment skills with situations and problems encountered on tactical operations. The idea was to bring a trained and educated medical operator into the tactical arena and get away from the practice of just having an ambulance on stand-by somewhere in the area. The response was overwhelming and we knew that we would not be able to stop there. It became clear that more time was necessary in order to cover more than just a familiarization and the basics.

In June of 1990 the first Tactical EMS School was held at the St. Paul, Minnesota Fire Training Academy. The cost was about $100 and the class was three days long. Students were provided with a tee shirt, bratwurst and BBQ on the first day, and the most practical, informative and professional product available. We understand that this is a very bold statement, but feel that it can be made for several reasons:

1. We attend regular training and participate in much of the advertised tactical EMS offerings that are out there. We have seen some really neat things and also some things that could not reasonably be called "training."

2. Our participants and graduates consistently tell us our time spent together has been very rewarding both personally and professionally. Many relate that our School is the most positive educational experience they have ever had. (Not only in TEMS, but in any adult learning program!)

3. Many of our graduates request to return as affiliate faculty members, or they enroll to take the course again.

In the first few years we tried to cram everything into a three day session. Several times we went into our own pockets to pay for incidentals such as the "welcome BBQ" we offer on the first evening. The bill for the tee shirts and notebooks was often greater than the $150 student tuition we charged. Since our charter flight as a "School" in 1990 we have changed many things:

• At the constant urging of our graduates we have made the course longer. It is now about 60 hours in length and we conduct more "training" and less "familiarization." We know we cannot cover everything, but we feel that our graduates now leave with a much more stable base to work from.

• In 1993 we departed from the seminar format and organized the instructional blocks into modules with a separate source document and lesson plan for each unit. This change helped make our "School" a more professional education product. (Several of our current cadre members are full-time professional educators.)

• Since 1995 we have used a secure location such as a military base. This type of facility can meet our needs for classrooms, outdoor breakout areas, MOUT villages, gas houses, participant billeting and foodservice better than most civilian convention centers for half the cost. Our most popular program became known as "The Essentials of Tactical EMS" and runs for 60 hours over 6 days. You still get a tee shirt and BBQ on the first day too!
• 2002 marked the first year of our program's accreditation with the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). Docs can now gain credit within their specific realm of licensure.
• In 2003 we left behind the encumbrances of a university system in order to continue driving our program in the direction we believe is best for our customers and fellow team members.
• 2005 marked our 10^th year of training at Camp Ripley.