The South Bruce OPP will be hosting a Youth Policing Academy in a couple months.
Constable Matthew Thorpe says the goal is to get youth who may be considering a career in policing interested in pursuing the profession. He says the academy will take students step by step through what they would need to do in order to eventually become a police officer.
"The training and application process that's involved, and then walking them through the day-to-day activities of an on-duty police officer and some of the specialty programs that we have to offer at later stages of their career in policing," Thorpe explained.
The academy will be hosted at either the South Bruce OPP detachment in Walkerton or Kincardine, depending on where the majority of the applications come from locally.
Constable Thorpe says that they will cover a number of different topics regarding the day-to-day life of an on-duty officer.
"Working a platoon, working day and night shifts, what type of investigations we get involved with. The investigative background from a frontline perspective, note taking, the computer work that goes along with those investigations, record keeping, and much more," added Thorpe.
They'll also cover canine services, emergency response, forensic identification, collision reconstruction, and impaired driving investigations during the academy.
When it comes to getting many young people interested in policing, Constable Thorpe says many get drawn in by how the profession is portrayed in movies and television, but he says the OPP wants to be upfront and frank about what the profession is actually like as a career.
"What you see on TV in policing isn't necessarily what happens in real life, but if you've ever had the idea in the back of your head that this is for you, this is a good way to find out," Thorpe enthused.
The academy will be held on Wednesday evenings from 5-7 p.m., beginning March 5 and concluding April 9. Applications are available at either South Bruce OPP detachment. They must be dropped off in person at the detachment. The deadline for the application is February 20. Constable Thorpe says they have room for roughly 20 students.