Governor Robert D. Ray dedicated the First Academy building in 1969. This building is now the administrative wing of the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy
Early in the existence of the Academy it was determined that assistance was needed in order to provide the mandated training to more than 4,000 officers who were functioning in the state at that time. In the years that followed, seven regional law enforcement training facilities made application to and were approved by the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy Council for the conduct of basic training schools. These institutions were approved on the basis of their former experience and/or interest in law enforcement training. The institutions were: Cedar Rapids Police Department, Des Moines Police Department, Sioux City Police Department, Hawkeye Institute of Technology, Indian Hills Community College, Iowa Western Community College and Northwest Iowa Vocational Technical School.