New Course: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon (UAP)

Farmingdale State College strives to offer students relevant courses that align with current trends, industry demands, and changes within society. In the Fall of 2026, Farmingdale will continue this proud practice by offering a new special topic elective addressing UAP’s and Homeland Security (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena). 

Within the past few years there has been increased attention to UAPs within the media resulting in pressure on the US Government by the public to disclose whether or not these phenomena are linked to extraterrestrial activities and what this could mean for all earth's inhabitants. Members of the public have called for the government to apply rigorous scientific approaches to UAP research in an effort to address the broader national security concerns. 

Source: Hollywood Reporter; Image courtesy of Age of Disclosure

For years the idea of extraterrestrial life was regarded as little more than a conspiracy. However, in 2025 after the release of the American UFO Documentary, The Age of Disclosure,  which featured the testimony of whistleblower, David Grush, a former US Air Force intelligence officer and Pentagon UAP task force representative, conversations about extraterrestrial life became more real and mainstream. Then in February 2026, subsequent to an interview with President Obama, in which he remarked “[aliens] are real”, President Trump directed government officials to release files on UAPs further fueling the debate of the existence of extraterrestrials.  

Source: Smithsonian Magazine; An unidentified aerial phenomenon captured by the U.S. Navy U.S. Department of Defense

This course is intended to address matters of airspace safety and domestic security threats—regardless of what the sources of UAPs are (e.g., human or non-human, where examples of the former include the 2023 “Chinese balloon incident” or the recent drone attacks across the globe), law enforcement agencies and first responders should be prepared to safely engage with such objects should they pose a threat to US airspace. The course will address policies, protocols, planning strategies and proposed legislation to address the detection and investigation of UAPs. The course will be taught by an expert with experience in law enforcement and emergency preparedness (Dr. Keith Taylor) and will feature case studies and guest speakers that are experts in UAP detection and investigation.

Source: CIA National Archives Catalog

This item was produced or created on June 4, 1964.

Our Director of the Center for Criminal Justice Studies stated, “it is my hope that this course will contribute to the College’s civil discourse initiatives—to look beyond armchair debates about the existence of aliens to instead to consider the possibility of non-human intelligence and the connections to public safety and security. As a forensic scientist, I hope this course encourages curiosity, critical thinking and the investigation of traces to better understand anomalous phenomena.”

The course, CRJ 490, will be offered in the Fall of 2026, Thursday nights 5:55-8:35pm.