Under ALET, the length of training is standardized at 12 weeks for all recruits. College students, through the University of Alaska (Southeast), can apply and pay their own way through the recruit class. Municipal officers can attend through the Police Standards Council, or their training can be funded by their own departments. Trooper recruits are selected, and the academy receives pass-through funds from the Division of State Troopers. All of the students receive identical training. More than 600 officers have been trained through the program. Although the program is operated in cooperation with a university, the Department of Public Safety controls the standards for completion. All recruits are screened by the Department of Public Safety. The academy operates under a paramilitary structure in the interest of teaching and cultivating disciplined behavior. Its fitness program is rigorous and mandatory, and firearms training is also provided. Input from the Police Standards Council is given considerable weight in determining curriculum. The curriculum must meet the basic requirements for State certification. A program such as ALET may be an answer to declining training budgets around the country. It is a good synthesis of a professional training model and a pay-your-way academy.