San Francisco, CA – The Praetorian Group, Inc., the leading online media company in the public safety and security market, announced today it has acquired LocalGovU, one of the leading online training companies serving local governments and risk pools nationwide, from Kansas-based U, Inc. The acquisition of LocalGovU significantly expands Praetorian’s online training portfolio and strongly complements the depth of content and services it offers first responders through PoliceOne.com, FireRescue1.com, EMS1.com and Corrections1.com.
More than 200 courses are offered through LocalGovU, covering all facets of local government ranging from law enforcement and corrections to HR, management and IT. Together, the two entities offer 270 full length courses and more than 600 training videos, and qualify for accredited law enforcement training in 22 states. They provide best-in-class content to more than 50,000 individual users each year across all aspects of local government and create one of the largest content footprints available across all functions of local government.
“We are very excited to expand Praetorian’s mission more broadly in the government space and to build upon the reputation of customer service and quality that LocalGovU and U, Inc. have been delivering for years,” said Alex Ford, CEO of Praetorian Group. “LocalGovU is a profitable, growing business that provides us with an incredible platform to continue to enhance our online training division and offer a wider array of online training resources to both our current law enforcement clients and the government risk pools LocalGovU currently serves.”
LocalGovU was launched in 2007 by U, Inc., which provides online training to a number of general industry segments. Of the training that LocalGovU offers to city and county governments, 60 percent of courses delivered consist of law enforcement and corrections content, and the remainder address local government functions, from water works to administration and HR. As part of the Praetorian Group, LocalGovU will remain a standalone brand, product and service, and over time will be offered as an additional product option alongside the PoliceOne Academy, Praetorian’s learning management system and video library for law enforcement.
“The Praetorian Group shares our philosophy and passion for delivering great training products and customer service to clients. We set a high bar for ourselves to meet in terms of taking care of our clients and the Praetorian Group does the same,” said Sharon Holt, Vice President of U, Inc. “We are confident they will be a great partner to our current and growing customer base of risk pools and government departments nationwide.”
To learn more about LocalGovU, visit www.localgovu.com.
About Praetorian Group
The Praetorian Group is the leading online media and technology company in the public safety and security market. Our properties are visited by more than 3 million public safety professionals every month and count over 1 million first responders as members. Praetorian owns and operates www.PoliceOne.com, www.FireRescue1.com, www.EMS1.com, www.CorrectionsOne.com and www.Military1.com, as well as more than 15 topical public safety websites providing resources ranging from online video to grant assistance. We are deeply committed to providing resources and cutting edge information that help first responders and military personnel stay safer, become better informed and more effectively protect their communities. For more information, visit www.PraetorianGroup.com.
About LocalGovU
LocalGovU is one of the leading providers of online training for local government nationwide and works directly with cities, counties and risk management groups to provide high quality, accredited training that reduces liability and mitigates risk. The LocalGovU system consists of more than 200 courses covering topics ranging from law enforcement and corrections to HR and environmental safety. LocalGovU law enforcement and corrections courses have been approved by POST agencies in Idaho, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, and South Carolina, and recognized by Georgia, Kansas, Nebraska and TCLEOSE in Texas. For more information, visit www.LocalGovU.com.
About U, Inc.
U, Inc. was founded in 1999 and has been at the forefront of eLearning for more than twelve years. U, Inc. provides online training to more than one million individuals annually from more than 18,000 organizations. Our mission is to provide online training that is affordable and available to markets that have been underserved in the past due to budget constraints or logistical issues. U, Inc. is located in Overland Park, Kansas, and is a past recipient of the Kansas City Ethics Award and the Best Places to Work in Kansas City. For more information, visit www.PoweredByU.com.