The University of Toledo is becoming the site of choice for law enforcement training in northwest Ohio.
This week, The University of Toledo Police Department is hosting a four-day Field Officer Training Course at the Dana Conference Center on Health Science Campus. The course will instruct experienced policemen and women on proper methods to train and evaluate new officers.
Officers from the University of Akron Police Department, the Clay Township Police Department, the Wood County Sheriff’s Office and the Bowling Green State University Police Department, in addition to UT Police, are participating in the training.
“The field training course is timely as the UT Police Department prepares to hire four new police officers,” UT Police Chief Jeff Newton said. “We want to make sure the best possible training experience is provided to the new officers.”
Training campus police officers is particularly important in light of recent events at colleges. The 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech in which 32 people were killed prompted enhanced campus security measures at college campuses across the country. The University of Toledo adopted the UT Alert text message system and the outdoor public address warning system as part of its emergency communications upgrades.
Just last month UT hosted training for law enforcement officers on vehicle stops and approaches in conjunction with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. And the University is planning law enforcement training sessions on defensive tactics, police interviewing and police dispatching.
“Education is key to the University’s mission, and it’s great to see UT providing training and instruction to police departments across the state and into Michigan,” Newton said.
