Anyone who wants to join Citizens Police Academy classes has until Aug. 15 to enroll by calling one’s local police department.
The free classes, which begin Thursday, Sept. 4, will take place every Thursday from 6-10 p.m. at the Sauk Rapids Police Department – a total of nine classes through September and October. All applicants must be at least 18 years old, able to pass a criminal-background check and live in one of the participating cities. Those cities are Sartell, St. Joseph, St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids and Waite Park.
The Citizens Police Academy course is a thorough introduction to police work, including traffic stops, investigations, narcotics, evidence and K9 training. Although graduates do not have any law-enforcement qualifications, they acquire a lot of information about police work that can be shared with others and thus help indirectly to make for safer cities.
The Sartell Police Department phone number is 320-251-8186.
The number of the St. Joseph department is 320-229-9426.