Classes gives students a taste of police, emergency work
Posted on Saturday, June 28, 2008
Area teens learned lifesaving skills during two first responder programs over the past couple of weeks.
Graduation ceremonies were hosted Friday for both the Fayetteville Police Department’s Youth Citizens Police Academy and the Washington County Fire Marshal’s Office Camp Rescue.
During the youth academy, 21 students learned various aspects of law enforcement, including criminal investigations, crime scene analysis, police report writing, defensive tactics and accident diagrams.
“ I interacted with all of these kids during the past two weeks, and I’m real proud of them all, ” police Sgt. Bill Phelan said. “ They were tested every day, and they each did an outstanding job. ”
Police Capt. Casey Brown said the youth academy was developed after the department’s Citizens Police Academy, which is geared toward adults. The program is sponsored by area businesses and is free of charge.
“ The Citizens Police Academy is all about developing a relationship between the Police Department and the community, ” Brown said. “ When you bring all those stakeholders together, it works real well. We may not be throwing people in jail or writing tickets, but we are solving real community problems. ”
In addition to police operations, participants completed a physical fitness test. Points were awarded for each activity based on performance. Students received awards during a graduation ceremony at the Bates Annex on the Fayetteville High School campus on Friday.
The “ Best Overall ” award was presented to Fayetteville resident Taylor Hoskins for her overall performance during the challenges.
“ I wanted to see what it’s like to be a cop and help the community, ” she said. “ My favorite part was learning how to investigate a crime scene. I’m definitely interested in working in the field of law enforcement someday. ”
Certificates of completion were also presented to participants in the sixth annual Camp Rescue during a brief ceremony at the Washington County Sheriff ’s Office on Friday.
Assistant Fire Marshal Laurie Roy said 31 teens participated in the one-week course, which is sponsored by the Fire Marshal’s Office, Central Emergency Medical Service and the Sheriff’s Office.
“ It’s a way for them to find out if they’d be interested in this kind of work someday, ” Roy said. “ It gets their foot in the door. Some people go through the course and find out it’s not something they want to do. Either way, they gain great experience. ”
The program provides students ages 14-18 the opportunity to become certified as first responders and attend an advanced-level junior fire marshal program. Throughout the week, participants engaged in team-building exercises. Area professionals provided instruction on topics from emergency dispatching to bleeding control. The cost for each student was $ 45.
“ I liked learning how to perform CPR, ” said Aaron Krudwig, 14. “ The hardest part for me was having to concentrate in class. I like the group activities most. It made me very interested in becoming a first responder someday. ”
A Camp Rescue Emergency Services Expo will take place from 9 a. m. to noon today in front of the Sheriff’s Office. The event is open to family and friends and will feature a K-9 demo and a car extrication performed by members of the Round Mountain Fire Department. The Washington County Search and Rescue Team will also be on hand to offer repelling lessons.
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