What is the Citizen’s Police Academy?

The Citizen’s Police Academy is a semi-annual, twelve-week program designed to give participants an in-depth working knowledge of the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office.  It consists of a series of classes and discussions held once a week for approximately three hours plus one Saturday morning. Participating citizens learn about the criminal justice system, your rights under the law, the juvenile crime situation, demonstrations of the SWAT Team and K9 Unit, Narcotics, and a lot more.  To better accommodate schedules, the program is offered twice per year, once in the Spring (daytime class), and once in the Fall (evening class).  Class size is limited to approximately 20 students with no cost to anyone who enrolls in the program.

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Why we have the program?

The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office is committed to the philosophy of Community Policing and being in partnership with the Community.  The Citizen’s Police Academy provides a forum to improve the lines of communication between the Sheriff’s Office and the community.  It is our goal that each graduate will become a partner with the Sheriff’s Office as well as assisting us in identifying problems and solutions to quality-of-life issues that face our community.  Graduates will be able to take their knowledge back into their neighborhoods where they can inform other community members.

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What are the benefits?

Community members will become much more informed on how and why the Sheriff’s Office operates and examines the culture of police work and the organization.  The Sheriff’s Office and citizens benefit by meeting each other face to face in a friendly setting allowing participants to get to know the people behind the badge while the deputies are exposed to citizens in a non-confrontational, non-threatening environment.  As a result, deputies and citizens foster an improved relationship with increased respect for one another.

 

Requirements:

• Must be at least 18 years of age

• Live or work within Oconee County

• All applicants will be subject to a background check

• All accepted participants are asked to commit to attending at least 10 of the 12 sessions due to popularity of class.

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The Citizens Police Academy is funded by the Oconee Sheriff's Foundation through the generous support of donations from individuals and businesses in our community.  To learn more about the Oconee Sheriff's Foundation, click here:  Sheriff's Foundation