SAVANNAH, Ga. — Fourteen Savannah Technical College Peace Officer Academy cadets celebrated graduating from the program with a completion ceremony on December 9.
These graduates completed the entire Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Basic Law Enforcement Training Course. Their successful completion of the program qualifies them to be state-certified peace officers.
This is the 40th group of students to complete the program since its inception in 2009. To date, the program has graduated more than 400 P.O.S.T.-certified officers.
Eight of the 14 graduates have been hired by area police departments. STC’s Peace Officer Academy has a 97% placement rate (AY20).
Each cohort selects a fallen officer for whom the graduating class will be named. The cohorts have a tradition of giving the family of the fallen officer a challenge coin dedicated to the officer. A challenge coin is a symbol of an unbreakable bond of dedication and allegiance among military personnel and law enforcement officers
The challenge coin tradition started as a military tradition in World War I and was later adopted by law enforcement. This cohort honors Lt. Dale Sylvester of Port Wentworth Police Department, who passed away on August 11, 2021. Lt. Sylvester had served with the Chatham County Police Department/District Attorney Office for 26 years and as a Criminal Investigation Division Officer with Port Wentworth Police Department for five years. He was survived by his wife, children, parents, family and friends.
The Basic POST Certification Technical Certificate of Credit provides students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to become competent law enforcement officers. The 11-week cohort program utilizes classroom instruction pertaining to criminal justice theory and the prevailing principles of modern law enforcement, as well as practical application of pertinent enforcement skills. College coursework contains the entire Georgia P.O.S.T. Basic Law Enforcement Training Course so that successful completion of the program will qualify the student to be a state-certified peace officer.
This program offers a first step in law enforcement. Select courses in the Basic Law Enforcement Certificate program transfer towards an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Criminal Justice. Many agencies pay all or part of the tuition for officers to work toward degrees in criminal justice, police science, administration of justice, or public administration and pay higher salaries to those who earn one of those degrees.
The college offers both day and evening cohort options. Students that qualify for HOPE may receive additional funds through the HOPE Career Grant with this program. For more information about the Peace Officer Academy visit www.savannahtech. edu/PeaceOfficerAcademy or contact the office at 912.443.5191 or njones@savannahtech. edu. The next day cohort begins in January 2023 and night cohort is scheduled to begin in March 2023.
Savannah Technical College serves Coastal Georgia with quality, market-driven technical education with campus locations in Chatham, Effingham and Liberty counties. Serving more than 10,000 credit and non-credit students annually, Savannah Tech offers nearly 150 different instructional programs in Aviation Technology, Business and Professional Services, Industrial Technology, and Health Sciences in addition to Adult Education classes, industry- specific training and continuing education. The college serves as an economic and community development partner for the region, offering corporate and customized training and assessment programs for business and industry.