Police Corps

The Police Corps and the federal Office of the Police Corps and Law Enforcement Education (Office of the Police Corps) were established by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (P.L. 103-322). To participate in the program, a state “lead agency” designated by the governor must submit a state plan for approval. Individuals apply to the state where they are willing to serve. The overall goal of the program is to address violent crime by helping local and state law enforcement agencies increase the number of officers with advanced education and training who serve on community patrol. Students accepted into the Police Corps receive up to $3,750 a year (up to a total of $15,000) to cover the expenses of study toward a baccalaureate or graduate degree. (Until February 1, 2004, participants received up to $7,500 per year, up to a total of $30,000.) Allowable educational expenses for full-time students include reasonable room and board. To be eligible for the program, a student must attend (or be about to attend) an accredited public or nonprofit 4-year college or university. Undergraduate participants must attend school full time. Participants may choose to study criminal justice and law enforcement or may pursue degrees in other fields. Men and women of all races and ethnic backgrounds are eligible, regardless of family income or resources. All Police Corps participants must possess the necessary mental and physical capabilities and moral characteristics to be an effective officer, meet the admission standards of the state Police Corps, meet the hiring standards of the law enforcement agency with which they will serve, and demonstrate sincere motivation and dedication to law enforcement and public service. Students who attend community college are eligible once they are accepted to a 4-year institution. Upon graduation, the participants must serve at least 4 years as a sworn law enforcement officer. (Until November 2002, law enforcement agencies hiring program graduates received $10,000 per year for each of the graduate's first 4 years of service.)

Students interested in the Police Corps apply to the lead agency of the participating state in which they wish to serve. (As of 2004, 27 states were involved.) Applications are then evaluated on a fully competitive basis according to defined admission criteria. No exceptions to the competitive standards are permitted. States with Police Corps programs are expected to advertise the availability of scholarships to the full range of prospective participants and to make special efforts to encourage applications from members of all racial, ethnic, and gender groups.

The Police Corps Act provides funding for basic law enforcement training that is to go well beyond the “minimum standards” training available to police officers in many states. This training is intended to teach the knowledge, skills, and attitudes essential to serve effectively on community patrol; to develop the physical, moral, and analytical capabilities of the participants; and to teach self-discipline and organizational loyalty. Police Corps training places special emphasis on leadership, integrity, effective communication, understanding of social context, problem solving in multicultural settings, and commitment to the principles embodied in the U.S. Constitution, including respect for the dignity of all people. All trainees must satisfy high performance standards for physical, mental, and emotional fitness. The 16 to 24 weeks of training may take place at a state or regional facility approved to offer Police Corps training. Although not specifically required by statute, the Guidelines for Training issued by the Office of the Police Corps require participating states to provide training in a residential, live-in facility. The Police Corps Act does, however, specifically authorize the Director of the Office of the Police Corps to authorize expenditures for “subsistence, quarters, and medical care” to participants at training centers (42 U.S.C. 14097 (a) (4)). The law enforcement agencies with which individual participants serve provide additional training as appropriate.

...