SUNY Potsdam Law Enforcement Training Institute, Pre-Employment Police Academy

Abstract

The SUNY Potsdam Law Enforcement Training Institute is a landmark applied learning initiative, designed to provide students with the opportunity to complete a rigorous pre-employment, state-approved police training course as part of their undergraduate curriculum. Students in an accredited New York State police basic course (colloquially a "police academy", though New York does not officially use this term) are trained in defensive tactics, emergency medical services, emergency vehicle operation, applying field sobriety tests to intoxicated individuals in a controlled setting, processing crime scenes, learning military drill and ceremony, and a plethora of other law enforcement training topics. The New York State pre-employment basic police training curriculum is one of the very best in the country and is above the standard of most other curricula. SUNY Potsdam's Criminal Justice faculty have augmented this excellent curriculum to create an exceptional learning experience.