SEMO president addresses cheating allegations at University Law Enforcement Academy

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KFVS) - Southeast Missouri State University President Dr. Brad Hobson is addressing cheating allegations at the University’s Law Enforcement Academy.

Earlier this month, the Missouri State Highway Patrol took over the criminal investigation into possible misconduct. The allegations were related to the administration of the Missouri Peace Officer Standards and Training, or POST, exam in December 2025.

Upon learning of the misconduct allegations, Hodson says SEMO officials discussed the incident with the Cape County prosecutor and the Missouri Department of Public Safety and hired an outside law firm to conduct an investigation.

Heartland News reached out to SEMO officials, and Dr. Hodson, for a statement or on-camera interview regarding the allegations before our First Alert Investigation aired on May 14. At the time, SEMO issued a five-sentence response.

In a Statement released Friday, May 29, Dr. Brad Hodson said, “The University is saddened by the actions taken by some individuals during the administration of the December 9, 2025, POST exam.”

“Their actions do not represent the high standards we hold all faculty, staff, and students to, nor does it represent how seriously we take our role in educating the next generation of law enforcement professionals. We are confident the steps taken regarding the Academy’s leadership, instructors, fall 2025 cadets, and testing protocols have put the Law Enforcement Academy back on track following this incident and in restoring trust and confidence in the program among our regional law enforcement partners,” Hodson said.

In the statement, Southeast outlines the steps they have taken after the allegations:

• Findings of the investigation were shared with the MDPS, and MDPS offered input on appropriate next steps.
• The University followed all MDPS recommendations on student conduct and personnel decisions. While there is a desire among media outlets to know additional details about actions taken regarding University personnel and students, we will not disclose those details as we are not legally allowed to do so.
• The University moved administration of the exam to its on-campus Testing Services Center, which is accredited by the National College Testing Association.
• The University moved other Academy tests to third-party or online platforms, rather in-class proctored exams.
• The University moved supervision of the Law Enforcement Academy to its Department of Criminal Justice, Social Work and Sociology, chaired by Dr. Brian Donavant, a 30+ year law enforcement veteran.
• Following the completion of the external investigation by Husch-Blackwell in April, the Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney announced a criminal investigation of one individual to be conducted by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. SEMO has received no notification that the University, the Law Enforcement Academy, which is a separate and distinct entity from the University’s Criminal Justice academic program, nor the University Police Department are under investigation.
• Finally, a letter was sent to nearly 70 law enforcement CEOs throughout the 8th Congressional District advising them: (1) of the leadership changes at the Academy; (2) that the spring 2026 Academy graduates completed the Academy and graduated on schedule; (3) that the Academy is actively accepting applications for the fall 2026 cohort; and (4) that the University will host a law enforcement roundtable this summer to hear from agency leaders directly about how the Academy can continue to meet their needs.

The statement does not address the future of the SEMO Department of Public Safety, which was recently suspended from the Cape-Bollinger County Major Case Squad. That action was related to the Academy investigation, and an individual at the center of the investigation is also connected with SEMO DPS.