Warsaw Police Bring Back Citizen's Academy
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Siara [email protected]
Sgt. Greg Oberlin said the academy started in 1993, and this year will be the 22nd class. He said this 10-week course is designed to give members of the community a chance to understand what being a police officer is like and what the department does to protect the community. He also said this course provides a better understanding of first responders in general and how agencies coordinate with each other.
“It’s all about safety,” Oberlin said. “Once people realize that, it’s a very beneficial program for them.”
The course is free and on a first-come, first-serve basis. The class can accept 28 to 30 people, and the application can be found on the county website or in the lobby of the police department. The class has a tentative start date of Sept. 10 and will be every Thursday from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The deadline for submitting applications is Aug. 1.
Applications can be mailed to Warsaw Citizen’s Police Academy, 2191 E. Fort Wayne St., Warsaw. Background checks will be conducted for each applicant.
Mike Newell attended the police academy course years ago, when a neighbor asked him to join. Newell was new to the community and thought the course would familiarize him with his new town. He still remembers his ride along with the police officer, the K-9 demonstrations and more important information that made him more aware of his surroundings. After participating in the course, Newell is more cautious.
“Now, you’re looking more in detail of what’s around you,” Newell said. “It made you a lot more aware of what’s going on in your community. It’s been nine years and I still go back to the class.”
Kathy Hamman also participated in the course years ago. She said the programs are very interesting and the officers cover everything. She also has made lifelong friends from taking the course.
“My time was so crazy, but there was no question where I was going to be the night of the class,” Hamman said.
After graduating from the course, Hamman continued to help organize the program for three years because she missed it. She also learned how dangerous a police officer’s job can be.
“There are two sides to every story and these guys are doing a job to risk their lives,” Hamman said. “It’s a dangers job, but I think we lose track of that.”
One part of the course is a ride along with an officer. Oberlin said this is a valuable lesson because citizens are immersed into real life scenarios where they can witness how people act toward law enforcement. Laura Curtis said after participating in the course she learned how dedicated officers are to their job.
“You go home and you’re like, ‘Wow, they do this in one day,’” Curtis said. “They clock in and every day is a different task for them.”
With recent events unfolding in Ferguson and Baltimore, Oberlin said this course is valuable for establishing a positive relationship between the community and law enforcement.
“This course empowers citizens,” Oberlin said. “It’s not just us. If you depend on just us, it would be a pretty bad community, because we can’t be everywhere and it gets more eyes out there helping us out.”
The course covers several subjects consisting of the history of the police department, recruiting and hiring process, firearm use, meeting the K-9s, DUI and sobriety tests, DARE, dive team, gangs, juvenile justice, drugs in the community, a jail tour and more. This year, an accident investigation/reconstruction course has been added.
After completing the 10-week course, each participant will graduate from the program. There is a lot of information spread throughout the 10 weeks, but past graduate Thania Harris said there is never a dull moment and she can not believe it took her so long to finally participate in the course.
“As busy as my life was at the time, I was there,” Harris said.
Since the beginning, many graduates still collaborate and stay as involved with the program as possible. Newell said he has helped by providing meals to those less fortunate and to officers who work on holidays. Harris now makes the calls to notify people who are accepted for the course. The group also said they participate in community projects to benefit Toys for Tots and they also have raised funds to purchase safety vests for the K-9s in the past.
Oberlin hopes that by taking the class, the community can understand the life of a police officer and realize they are just human.
“We’re not better than anyone else,” Oberlin said. “Our main goal isn’t to make a certain number of arrests, it’s to go home after a shift.”[[In-content Ad]]
Sgt. Greg Oberlin said the academy started in 1993, and this year will be the 22nd class. He said this 10-week course is designed to give members of the community a chance to understand what being a police officer is like and what the department does to protect the community. He also said this course provides a better understanding of first responders in general and how agencies coordinate with each other.
“It’s all about safety,” Oberlin said. “Once people realize that, it’s a very beneficial program for them.”
The course is free and on a first-come, first-serve basis. The class can accept 28 to 30 people, and the application can be found on the county website or in the lobby of the police department. The class has a tentative start date of Sept. 10 and will be every Thursday from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The deadline for submitting applications is Aug. 1.
Applications can be mailed to Warsaw Citizen’s Police Academy, 2191 E. Fort Wayne St., Warsaw. Background checks will be conducted for each applicant.
Mike Newell attended the police academy course years ago, when a neighbor asked him to join. Newell was new to the community and thought the course would familiarize him with his new town. He still remembers his ride along with the police officer, the K-9 demonstrations and more important information that made him more aware of his surroundings. After participating in the course, Newell is more cautious.
“Now, you’re looking more in detail of what’s around you,” Newell said. “It made you a lot more aware of what’s going on in your community. It’s been nine years and I still go back to the class.”
Kathy Hamman also participated in the course years ago. She said the programs are very interesting and the officers cover everything. She also has made lifelong friends from taking the course.
“My time was so crazy, but there was no question where I was going to be the night of the class,” Hamman said.
After graduating from the course, Hamman continued to help organize the program for three years because she missed it. She also learned how dangerous a police officer’s job can be.
“There are two sides to every story and these guys are doing a job to risk their lives,” Hamman said. “It’s a dangers job, but I think we lose track of that.”
One part of the course is a ride along with an officer. Oberlin said this is a valuable lesson because citizens are immersed into real life scenarios where they can witness how people act toward law enforcement. Laura Curtis said after participating in the course she learned how dedicated officers are to their job.
“You go home and you’re like, ‘Wow, they do this in one day,’” Curtis said. “They clock in and every day is a different task for them.”
With recent events unfolding in Ferguson and Baltimore, Oberlin said this course is valuable for establishing a positive relationship between the community and law enforcement.
“This course empowers citizens,” Oberlin said. “It’s not just us. If you depend on just us, it would be a pretty bad community, because we can’t be everywhere and it gets more eyes out there helping us out.”
The course covers several subjects consisting of the history of the police department, recruiting and hiring process, firearm use, meeting the K-9s, DUI and sobriety tests, DARE, dive team, gangs, juvenile justice, drugs in the community, a jail tour and more. This year, an accident investigation/reconstruction course has been added.
After completing the 10-week course, each participant will graduate from the program. There is a lot of information spread throughout the 10 weeks, but past graduate Thania Harris said there is never a dull moment and she can not believe it took her so long to finally participate in the course.
“As busy as my life was at the time, I was there,” Harris said.
Since the beginning, many graduates still collaborate and stay as involved with the program as possible. Newell said he has helped by providing meals to those less fortunate and to officers who work on holidays. Harris now makes the calls to notify people who are accepted for the course. The group also said they participate in community projects to benefit Toys for Tots and they also have raised funds to purchase safety vests for the K-9s in the past.
Oberlin hopes that by taking the class, the community can understand the life of a police officer and realize they are just human.
“We’re not better than anyone else,” Oberlin said. “Our main goal isn’t to make a certain number of arrests, it’s to go home after a shift.”[[In-content Ad]]
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