The 24th Centralia Police Department’s Citizens’ Academy scheduled to begin on March 29th is one of
Centralia Police Departments Community Policing programs. The Academy will run for nine weeks on
Thursday evenings from 6-9 p.m. and is limited to 30 students. The Community Policing philosophy
encourages a more meaningful dialog between policing agencies and the communities they serve. This is
our opportunity to show how we operate and the challenges we face. The main goal of this program is
to build good relationships within the community by working together with our citizens to create a
common understanding and support of the Centralia Police Department and law enforcement as a
whole. Safe communities are a shared responsibility. We want people to be stakeholders in the
community to work with us to keep it a safe place to live. Community support and understanding
creates a valuable crime fighting/problem solving partnership.
Over the nine weeks students will learn all aspects of how the police department works, including
patrol procedures, which shows people how and why officers do things in the course of their daily
duties. They will see and hear about the potential danger police officers face every day from a common
traffic stop to entering a domestic violence situation. They’ll meet officers from various departments
including Street Crimes, Traffic, K-9 and SWAT. Detectives will also talk about sex crimes, fraud and
Identity theft. Students will gain an awareness of crime and prevention so they may keep from
becoming victims themselves and how to accurately report a crime in a timely manner. Participants will
get an inside look at the selection and training of our officers and how the Centralia Police Department
operates. The academy consists of both classroom and “hands on” instruction taught by department
personnel and includes the hugely popular and fun firearms day out at the police range. We will be
firing an array of duty and special weapons. Additional topics covered will include the very colorful
history of the Centralia Police Department and some of the more interesting cases they have been
involved with.
An often misunderstood and negatively portrayed job, this is an opportunity to come and meet the Chief
of Police along with many Officers, ask questions and really see what it’s like to be a police officer.
Students will gain a tremendous amount of insight and understanding of the job. This Academy reflects
the desire of the Centralia Police Department to positively interact with people, not just be reactive and
reinforce the good work that is done on a daily basis, but often goes unnoticed. We value the input from
citizens and in turn want to continue to provide good service. Bottom line is, it’s a lot of fun, you will
see some cool stuff and get a behind the scenes look at how the Centralia Police Department does
business.
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