GRPD Youth Police Academy

We are gearing up to again host our Summer Youth Police Academy. The academy is a youth based partnership between the GRPD and students in Kent County. It is designed for students between the ages of 16 and 18 who are interested in a hands-on, comprehensive look at the law enforcement profession. This one week training program encompasses over 50 hours dedicated to physical training, classroom lecture, public speaking and scenario based training.
Training Topics will include:
Professional Conduct
Defensive Tactics
Special Response Team
Patrol Operations
Vice Unit
K-9 Unit
Dispatch
Hostage Negotiations
Traffic Investigations

The topics are instructed by field experts and much of the training will be hands on learning. This is truly a unique experience that will aid students in their professional development.

Due to the very successful programs of the last two years, we have decided to expand the program and host TWO Sessions this summer:
June 8 - 12, 2009 (Session 1)
July 6 - 10, 2009 (Session 2)
All high school Juniors and Seniors who reside in Kent County OR attend any school within Kent County are eligible to apply.
Applications can be found in the following places:
-In person at the Grand Rapids Police Department Training Bureau
-Online at www.grpolice.com (or click on the GRPD link on this page)
-By contacting Officer Gady at (616) 456-4247
Applications will be due by March 13th, 2009 at 5:00pm!
Check back often as I will post more information on this exciting opportunity in the next few weeks!

Meet our Background Investigators

From left to right: Refugio (Greg) Alcala, Bryan Boone, Gene Tobin, Chip Ware, Jenny Rood and Kent Beracy. Not Pictured: RJ Zabriskie and Jamie Chianfoni - Pics and Bio will be included at a later date.

For those of you in our hiring process, we would like to introduce our talented group of Background Investigators.
Officer Greg Alcala is a 10 year verteran of GRPD. He spent several years on Third Shift Patrol before being selected as a South Service area Community Officer. He is also a Field Training Officer, Defensive Tactics Instructor and OC Instructor.
Officer Bryan Boone has worked for GRPD since 1990! He served 8 years on our Special Response Team (then called the NPU,) 3 years as a Detective, 8 years on Patrol and has been a FTO for over 15 years.
Officer Gene Tobin has over 12 years of Policing experience and has served 10 years at GRPD. His career has included time in our Vice Unit, Community Police Officer program and Third Shift Patrol in our East Service Area. Officer Tobin has been assigned as a Background Investigator previously and is also a FTO.
Officer Chip Ware has worked for GRPD for 19 years! He is a Field Training Officer and has worked Patrol, Vice and K-9. Officer Ware has also done Background Investigations in the past.
Officer Jenny Rood is a 9 year veteran of the Police Department. She is currently assigned to the South Service Area on Third Shift. She has done Background Investigations several times in the past. She is also a CPR/First Aid Instructor and a FTO.
Officer Kent Beracy has 18 years experience as a Police Officer - 10 of those years with GRPD. He currently works Third Shift Patrol in our West Service Area. He has done Background Investigations in the past and is also a FTO.

Reminder: If you are in our Hiring Process (which closed on December 15, 2008) you MUST report any changes of residency, employment etc or police contacts to your Background Investigator. You may call our Office (616) 456-3330 to be directed to your Investigator.

Test Day

Thank you to all of you who came to GRPD Headquarters on Monday and tested with us! It was great to see you all and exciting to think that soon, we will be working with some of you! Although there were several of us there to talk to, if you still have questions, please don't hesitate to ask. We are happy to help.
For those of you who could not make this test or are still in the academy, come back to this site often! I will keep you updated on all current and future hiring information as soon as it becomes available. In case you are interested, here is a "sneak peek" of what you can expect at our next test! I'd like to give a big Thank You to Officer Terry Dixon for taking the pictures and editing the video and to Lt. Lind for the video introduction.

CAREER IN LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPO

Please join us for another Grand Rapids Police Department first. Approaching fast on the heels of the first annual Grand Rapids Police Department Open House is the Career in Law Enforcement Expo, being held on Saturday, January 10, 2009. The Expo is the second part of a double pronged, long-term strategy to get interested candidates in the doors of the Grand Rapids Police Department. The Expo is designed for individuals who are not certified and who have a desire to find out more about what it takes to become a Law Enforcement Officer.
The GRPD will be partnering with Grand Rapids Community College's (GRCC) Criminal Justice Program. GRCC Police Academy Director Jodi Richhart will be on staff to field questions regarding academic requirements, as well as the application and selection process for acceptance into the Academy.

The Career in Law Enforcement Expo will take place on Saturday, January 10, 2009 at the follwing times/locations:
10:00am to 12:00pm at the Steil Center, 235 Straight Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.
1:00pm to 3:00pm at the Seidman Center, 139 Crofton St SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507.
4:00pm to 6:00pm at the Hispanic Center, 1204 Grandville Ave SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.

The Grand Rapids Police Department believes that by utilizing its best resource, the citizens of Grand Rapids, the rewards to the Department, and to the city as a whole, will be endless.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone! We are looking forward to seeing many of you on Monday, January 5, 2009 for the exam. Please be sure to be on time as the test will start at the time indicated. If you have any questions, our office will be staffed tomorrow (Friday) so please contact Officer Jason Gady at (616) 456-4247. Best of luck to all of you on Monday!