Newport Beach will offer teen police academy

Deepa Bharath

NEWPORT BEACH -- The Police Department will begin offering a

teens-only version of it Citizens Academy next month.

Classes for high school students in the city will begin June 27 and

will be held once a week for eight weeks.

The class will be the “young adult version” of the Citizens Academy

held three times a year, Sgt. Steve Shulman said.

“The program is designed to help them better understand how we

operate,” he said. Shulman said students will also gain community service

hours for school when they complete the program.

“We started the program because we believe forming opinions about

police officers is done during the early stages of adulthood,” he said.

“We want to help teenagers understand the myths associated with police

officers.”

There are about 25 open spots for this summer’s session, Shulman said.

The classes will be open to all local high schools -- Corona del Mar,

Newport Harbor and Sage Hill.

Students will obtain an overall knowledge of the department, how it is

organized and how officers respond to calls. They will have an

opportunity to meet the police chief, supervisors, patrol officers,

detectives, dispatchers and other members of the department.

Participants will also get a chance to participate in demonstrations

and ride-alongs.

The department intends to offer the program every year between June

and August, Shulman said. Students are expected to attend all eight

classes. A graduation ceremony will be held at the end of the session.

Applicants must be between 14 and 18, enrolled and attending high

school in Newport Beach, have parent or guardian consent to attend, and

commit to attending all eight sessions.

Those interested must complete an application and return it to the

community relations office. Applications are available in the Police

Department’s lobby, on the Web site at o7 www.nbpd.orgf7 or by mail on

request.

For more information, call (949) 644-3662.