Savannah Standard

Savannah Technical College issued the following announcement on  Aug. 20.

 Nine students from the Savannah Technical College Peace Officer Academy celebrated graduating from the program with a completion ceremony on August 20, 2021. Liberty County Sherriff William Bowman presented the group challenge.

The four men and five 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 35th 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. Seven of the nine candidates have been hired by area police departments including Chatham County Sheriff’s Office, Garden City Police Department, Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Richmond Hill Police Department. The other two have pending employment with area agencies. 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 APO Charles Van Vleck of Georgia Ports Authority Police Department, who passed away on January 10, 2021.  APO Van Vleck had served with the GPA for 18 years and had previously served with the US Coast Guard for 20 years.  He was survived by his wife, four children, grandchildren, siblings, family and friends.

The Basic POST Certification Technical Certificate of Credit provides students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to become competent law enforcement officers. The 11-week cohort program utilizes 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 September 2021.

Savannah Technical College serves Coastal Georgia with quality, market-driven technical education with campus locations in Chatham, Effingham and Liberty Counties. Serving more than 10,000 credit and non-credit students annually, Savannah Tech offers nearly 150 different instructional programs in Aviation Technology, Business and Professional Services, Industrial Technology, and Health Sciences in addition to Adult Education classes, industry-specific training and continuing education. The College serves as an economic and community development partner for the region, offering corporate and customized training and assessment programs for business and industry.

Savannah Technical College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award associate degrees, diplomas, and technical certificates of credit. Questions about the accreditation of the College may be directed in writing to the SACSCOC at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097, by calling 404.679.4500, or by visiting www.sacscoc.org.

Original source can be found here.