The Madison Police Department is proud to announce that the 2016 Pre-Service Academy class took their oath-of-office on September 12 at our Police Training Center.
Almost 700 applicants competed for the twenty-three positions. We are proud of this class profile which reflects a group that has an average age of 27 years old. Of note, 43% of our class is comprised of women and 30% are people of color. All have significant life, work, education, and community service experiences. Below is an alphabetical listing of the backgrounds and academic pursuits of our newly-constituted class:
| Academic Background | Prevous Employment |
|---|---|
| Business | Autistic Therapist |
| Communication Arts, Communication Sciences and Rhetoric | Communication Customer Service |
| Criminal Justice/Police Science | Community Service Officer |
| Criminology | Crime Scene Investigator |
| Fine Arts | Financial Specialist |
| Forensic Science | Hospitality Business |
| International Studies | Laboratory Technician |
| Leadership and Organizational Studies | Officer Operations Associate |
| Legal Studies | Police Officer |
| Peace Studies, Internationsl Relations and African Studies | Quality Assurance Assistant |
| Political Science, Native American Studies | Research Assistant |
| Social Work | Sales Associate/Representative |
| Security Officer | |
| Senior Recruiter | |
| Student Ambassador |
Recruit officers will be trained in a host of topic areas including constitutional law and procedure, criminal investigations, relational skills, community policing and problem solving strategies, professional communications, ethics, crisis intervention, tactical skills, emergency vehicle operations, vehicle contacts, traffic crash investigation, critical thinking and decision making, and report writing. These subject areas are but a small sampling of courses that will be covered in great depth over the course of five and a half months.
Following a comprehensive Pre-Service Academy over 864 hours in length, each recruit will be paired with a veteran officer for three months of practical on the job field training before being assigned to solo patrol in one of MPD's five districts.
MPD is constantly recruiting. We seek individuals who are mature, have a diverse life experience and reflect the diversity of our community. We are looking for people who are good problem solvers, critical thinkers and most importantly, people that are good communicators. For candidates to be considered for the 2017 Pre-Service Academy class, all applications must be received by November 1, 2016.
This blog was authored by Captain Thomas Snyder, Captain of our Training Center.