Georgia Departments Are Engaging Tomorrow’s Public Servants, Today

To better engage Georgia's youth, a number of police and fire departments across the state have developed programs that are both educational and extremely fun for the often difficult-to-reach teenaged sect.

Positive youth engagement with police has become a priority issue. The Dunwoody Police Department's Teen Police Academy was slated to begin in 2020 but was postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Around that time we had a lot of protests because of national issues in relation to law enforcement," says Sergeant Anwar Sillah. "We wanted to build a strong relationship with the young people in our community to let them know that when they're pulled over they don't have to be scared."

Fire departments are holding their own programs to expand reach and keep people safe. "Community risk reduction by opening up fire safety to all age groups is critically important," says Stephaene Core, Community Risk Reduction Officer with the City of Fayetteville Fire Department.

For more information about these programs, or to inquire about initiatives in your own area, contact the appropriate police or fire departments.

Dunwoody Teen Police Academy

The 5-day program is open to teens aged 14 to 19. Participants enjoy behind-the-scenes exposure to the the department, as well as field trips to partner sites like the 911 Center and DeKalb County Jail. Demonstrations by the bomb squad, forensics, and more offer the teens an expanded look at related law-enforcement careers. The curriculum is designed to keep them safe and help them understand the policing process, like traffic stop scenarios, use of force, active shooter response, and more. Sgt. Sillah reports that he most popular portion of the camp involves a firearms simulator. "The teen participants are the officers and decide how to react when faced with a threat like an armed robbery or a domestic," Sgt. Sillah explains. "It puts them into the shoes of a police officer."

Athens-Clark County Police Department Cadet Program

The ACCPD Cadet Program differs because it's not a one-week, camp-like atmosphere. Instead, high school and college students aged 16 and up apply for a paid position that helps them incur hands-on training, often working toward an eventual career in law enforcement. The program began in 2022 with twin goals of recruiting officers and preventing youth gang involvement/violence, says Lieutenant Jody Thompson in the public information office of the ACCPD. Cadets work around their school schedules up to 19 hours per week and receive leadership skills, report-writing, and other essential training.

Although one cadet has been hired as a police officer via the program, that's not the only option. "Cadets have worked in our records unit, investigations, and central communications," says Lt. Thompson, who says that they also lend a younger perspective that benefits the office. Regarding a current cadet, "She has helped improve our social media and communications geared toward her generation. The cadets have contributed to our department by 'bridging the gap' between the generations."

The Perry Fire & Emergency Services Junior Fire Academy

Perry held their inaugural 5-day Junior Fire Academy this summer, attended by rising seventh and eighth-grade students from Perry Middle School. In addition to learning important life skills like basic first aid and CPR training, the students learned many firefighter-specific skills, like hose advancement and search and rescue. They also got into the science of fire behavior and put on firefighter gear to experience how heavy the equipment is.

Interwoven in all of the lessons was the importance of teamwork. "That's one of the big things in fire service, one person can't do this job alone," Perry's Prevention Chief Ephraim Wheeler said. Even if they don't pursue fire service, "You never know where you're going to be at when a crisis occurs, and anything we can teach in the community regarding how to help until the fire, police, or ambulance arrives can be lifesaving to the individual in crisis."

Fayetteville Junior Police Academy

Fayetteville PD's Junior Police Academy has impressively reached it's 20th year of immersing middle-school aged students in police work. Like many of the other programs, FPD collaborates with SWAT, K-9, and other units to give campers a comprehensive glimpse into the career path. They also participate in scenario-based traffic stop pullovers and process a crime scene. Instructors even decompose an actual store-bought chicken so that the campers can learn about decomposition!

The program has been so successful within the community that a second week has been added to next year's session. This will allow the department to educate even more young minds, who will hopefully then go out into the community and relay their positive experience with the FPD. Possibly most important are the intangible benefits the students are enjoying. Captain Austin Dunn with the FPD's Office of Professional Standards recalls a time when he bumped into a student's parent post-graduation. "She wanted to say thank you because her son was lacking confidence since he was one of the youngest participants," he said, noting that changed quickly. "We saw teambuilding, personality development and overall the kids benefited from self-growth."

Fayetteville Junior Firefighter Summer Camp

The Fayetteville Fire Department's Junior Firefighter Summer Camp featured a hands-on curriculum including daily obstacle course challenges, bucket brigade, fire chemistry 101, observing a live fire, and much more. One popular lesson helped to build radio communication skills. Using walkie-talkies, one camper was designated as "captain." The captain went to the fire station, while the rest of the group had to radio in. "Captains had a the LEGO instructions and the rest of the group had the LEGOs. The captain radioed instructions and they all learned to work through the static and feedback to complete the build," says FFD's Stephaene Core, community risk reduction officer. It all culminated in a graduation ceremony at City Hall with the mayor, complete with a water balloon/gun fight with the firefighters.

Dunwoody's Sgt. Sillah would love to see programs like these proliferate. "Agencies across the countries are short-staffed," he says. "One of the best ways to recruit is to let them see what we do." Then, whether they choose forensics or fire service or detective work, society as a whole benefits.

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