During an official visit to Russia, the governor of Kansas laid the groundwork for this history-making exchange. The Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing served as liaison with St. Petersburg, the U.S. State Department, and the Training Center to coordinate the exchange and handle any preparation required, such as visas and background checks. In November 1992, the Trade Division of the Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing selected five Russian officers to attend the training center. Academy employees were given an 8-hour cultural awareness seminar to assist them in their interactions with the Russian officers. On March 7, 1993, the Russian officers arrived at the Training Center. Although the Russian officers had already received basic training in Russia, they were genuinely interested in all aspects of the academy's program, which included firearms training, felony vehicle stops, defensive tactics, crime scene investigation, and searches and seizures. Communication proved to be a minor difficulty, since all of the officers spoke English, albeit with varying degrees of proficiency. At the conclusion of the 10-week program, the First Deputy Head of the Leningrad Administration, accompanied by a delegation of government officials, attended the graduation ceremony. The second half of the exchange program occurred in August 1993, when a delegation of Kansas police officers spent the month in St. Petersburg with Russian police officials.