Will Docken Scholarship

For many years William Docken faithfully served the men and women of IACIS, both as a pioneer member and as an elected official on the Board of Directors. To those that were fortunate to know him, he was known only as “Will”. After Will’s retirement as a Special Agent from the United States Customs Service, he invested his time and energy into giving back to the forensic community he so dearly loved. Will spent a considerable amount of his time providing his forensic expertise and assistance to those smaller departments that had little or no computer forensic support of their own. 

On Feb. 8, 2013, Will passed away at his rural home in Galesville, WI, after a long battle with brain cancer. The following is an excerpt from his Obituary: 

William John Docken was born Nov. 11, 1949, in La Crosse.  After growing up in rural Galesville, Will graduated from Gale-Ettrick High School in 1968. Will married Vickie Oanes on June 19, 1970. He attended and graduated from UW-Platteville in 1973 with a degree in Criminal Justice. His career in law enforcement included working for the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department, the Platteville Police Department, the Federal Internal Revenue Service and U.S. Customs. 

In 1991 Will was one of the first law enforcement officers in the United States trained in computer forensics. Will held a charter, lifetime membership in the International Association of Computer Investigative Specialists and served on the Board of Directors for the Forensic Association of Computer Technologists. After retiring from Law Enforcement, Will continued to do Computer Forensics with Will Docken Investigations. 

In memory of Will’s selfless devotion to the field of computer forensics, the IACIS Board of Directors unanimously supported honoring the memory of our former director and longtime friend through the creation of a scholarship to assist those who really have no other chance of participating in our IACIS Basic Computer Forensic Examiner (BCFE) training course in Orlando.  The annual scholarship recipient will have the course tuition fees waived and will be furnished with all the course materials, equipment, and hotel accommodations at no cost.  This year, some travelling expenses may also be covered – depending on donations availability. 

To qualify for the scholarship, applicants for this scholarship must be employed (by a city, county, or state) Law Enforcement agency to conduct digital forensic examinations. Additionally, the agency cannot have more than two personnel assigned to conduct digital forensic examinations.  Applications must include the WD Scholarship Application Form, a C.V. of the applicant, an essay (500 words maximum) on career goals and how the applicant and their agency will benefit from BCFE training, and a signed letter from a top official of their agency (on agency letterhead) confirming the information provided in the application. All documents should be merged/appended in a single PDF document and named in the following manner: Surname_First Name_WDS.pdf. 

Applications open from September 1^st through to November 30^th.  The WDS Committee will decide on the scholarship recipient. The scholarship recipient and their Agency will be informed via the e-mail(s) provided in the application form. The WDS Committee’s decision and the contact details of the chosen Applicant / LE Agency will also be published in IACIS’ ListServ and social media.