Eighteen youths from the Greater Boston area spent a week at Boston College this past summer at the first Boston College Youth Police Academy. The youth cadets were selected to participate because of their interest in law enforcement, according to the Boston College Police Department, and all costs were covered thanks to many generous sponsors.
āWe had been looking at ways that we could engage with the greater Boston community,ā said Ļć½¶ŠćPD Lieutenant Jeffrey Postell of Patrol Operations and Community Policing. āWe wanted to enable the youth who were selected to become more self-assured, caring, disciplined adultsāto instill confidence and encourage.āĀ
The Boston College Police Department's Youth Police Academy included an outing with the Boston College Police marine unit.
The program was designed with elements of a police academy and incorporated discipline, physical fitness, and drill exercises. The weekās many activities focused on teamwork, leadership, communication, confidence, and relationship-building. Cadets also took a CPR certification course and had the opportunity to learn about investigation procedures by documenting a simulated crime scene and collecting evidence. Other activities included a harbor cruise with the Boston Police marine unit and training in fire prevention and alcohol education.Ā
āBeing here at Ļć½¶Šć showed me a part of myself I didnāt know,ā wrote one cadet in a course evaluation. āBeing here showed me that I am capable of many things and that if I find anything difficult, I can keep trying and never give up.ā
The cadets received certificates in a ceremony at the end of the weekāan extremely moving moment, said Postell, after witnessing their transformation during the program.
āIāve been in law enforcement for over 20 years and Iāve been at Ļć½¶Šć for about 10 years now. Seeing those kids walk across the stage, the look on their faces, the pride and the confidence they showedāthat was one of the proudest moments I have had since Iāve been here. There were very talented young men and women in that group and, frankly, they set the bar high for future academies that we will hold.ā
āChristine Balquist | University Communications | October 2019