Twenty-six students are graduating from the latest offering of the Lloydminster RCMP Youth Academy which ran over three days at the Synergy Vault at Holy Rosary High School.
From the Troop 5 teenagers, coordinator Cst. Melanie Flynn thinks that about 10 of them are thinking of becoming police officers and heading to Regina for the six-month training.
Grade 12 student Jace Rhyason who is graduating from Holy Rosary in June says he will apply to the Regina Depot when he turns 18.
“I like to help people and I want to make a difference. And I don’t want to sit in an office,” says Rhyason as he encourages other youth to sign up. The 17-year-old, who plays hockey and likes to stay active won some of the challenges over the three-day spring break program which ran from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. each day.
Students ages 14-19 from local schools, along with some from Kitscoty and Vermilion took part in the academy which saw the K-Division RCMP fitness coordinator come in from Edmonton on day one. The teens got a taste of the RCMP fitness assessment. The students were introduced to the criminal code, police intervention models and decision-making, and forensic identification services including fingerprinting and evidence gathering.
Cst. Flynn says the youth were introduced to police defensive tactics including using handcuffs, searches, and pepper spray with a saline-filled sprayer.
“We talked a lot about our police authority to arrest individuals and how we came to that decision. We talked about different elements of criminal code offenses. It’s a lot to cover in three days,” says Flynn.
The teens enjoyed a lot of the hands-on activities, especially with the police dog services being involved on the final day. There are over 150 specializations in the RCMP.
The Lloydminster RCMP Youth Academy is put on with funding from Saskatchewan Lotteries in collaboration with the Lloydminster and Area Drug Strategy.