Peace Officer Academy Honors Graduates – March 2021

SAVANNAH – Ten students from the Savannah Technical College Peace Officer Academy celebrated graduating from the program with a completion ceremony on March 26, 2021.

The six men and four women have completed coursework containing the entire Georgia Peace Officer Standards & 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 33rd 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. Many candidates are in various stages of the application process with statewide agencies. Eight of the ten candidates have been hired by area police departments. STC’s Peace Officer Academy has a 97% placement rate.     

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 Chief Waldo E. Jones of Pembroke Police Department, who lost his life during a vehicle pursuit on June 16, 1962.

Chief Jones had served with the agency for 14 years and had previously served with the U.S. Army during World War II where he was awarded the Purple Heart. He was survived by his wife and three children.

The Basic POST Certification Technical Certificate of Credit provides students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to become competent law enforcement officers. The 400-hour, 11-week cohort program includes 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 Peace Officers Standards & Training (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.

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 class begins in May 2021.

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#2129 |  March 30, 2021
Peace Officer Academy: Nancy Jones
912.443.5191 or njones@savannahtech.edu

Media contact: Amy Shaffer, APR
912.443.5512 or ashaffer@savannahtech.edu