Question about Tennessee Police Certification

[DaveTN]

I’m just curious about this, I’m too old to be a cop anymore…

But I was talking to someone the other day that said a friend had been accepted to the Police Academy. I said “Oh really, what department is he going to work for?â€

They said that he hasn’t been hired by a department but has his criminal justice degree and got accepted.

I was a cop in Illinois and there you had to be hired by a Police Department to go to the academy. So what gives? You can just pay (or get a scholarship) and go to the academy? If so what’s it cost? I went in the late 70’s and it was a bunch of money for the department then to send an Officer.

[EMTRN]

To go to TLETA he must be with a department. I have heard that a community college in East Tennessee was going to start their own, but other than that you must be with a department. Some other states like Florida let people sponsor themselves through the academy and hope they get a job offer when they graduate.

[BigPoppa]

Walters State Community College in Morristown and Cleveland State Community College in Cleveland both run POST Certified Basic Police Academies. Almost anybody with the money and a clean background can put themselves through those schools. When you graduate you are POST "certifiable". Get hired by somebody and you become POST "certified".

TLETA in Donelson (The "State" Academy) primarily trains rookie officers who have already been hired by a department, but TLETA has been known to accept Criminal Justice majors on a space available basis. They must also pay their way through.

Ballpark for any of the 3 is around $2000-$2500.

[doughnut]

I can't speak for TN but in my experience, the Commonwealth of VA has regional academies and then some agencies have there own academies. It seems that here in VA you go to the academy that is in your hiring agency's geopgraphical region unless those spots are full and your agency needs you trained so they might send you to another regional academy. In reference to "pre-employment" spots, they are available if there is enough room. My academy class was so large we didn't have any pre-employment spots available. Pre-employment is a good thing if you don't have a job and have the funds to go through. From what I've been told some student loans will cover the expenses. The training is the same for all but I beleive some portions such as driving and pursuit are not available to pre-employment until they are hired by an agency. I don't know if this a liability issue, equipment issue, or what. "Pre-Employment" folks usually get jobs quick because the agency doesn't have the time gap they would suffer to train a new officer/deputy. Our regional academy is in Bristol, VA.

Edited July 9, 2008 by doughnut

[BimmerFreak]

As previously mentioned, you need to be sponsored (ie: hired, working, offered a job) by a dept. to attend Donelson.

Cleveland State Community College runs a good academy as well.

It's not "THE" academy according to all the Donelson grads....but you know how that goes...

http://www.clevelandstatecc.edu/academics/divisions/business_technology/law_enforcement_training/bpindex.htm

Last time I checked, the Cleveland class seat priority went to:

LEOs currently working at their Dept.

New hires sponsored by their Dept.

Criminal Justice degree students

All others.

[Guest Mugster]

I think Columbia State has something like a POST academy. I don't think its advertised too well though.

[Guest ProguninTN]

uns a good academy as well.

It's not "THE" academy according to all the Donelson grads....but you know how that goes...

Yeah, and TLETA is not the Academy for those who work for Metro Nashville.

(I know people who have gone to Metro, and the attitude there is the same...Everyone thinks his/her Academy is better than the others).

[BimmerFreak]

Correct, Metro has it's own academy.