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Albany Police pay visit to Capital Region BOCES

Officer Mika teaches Dante Colose of Niskayuna and Aliyah Rahaman of Schenectady how to properly use handcuffs. (Photo: Capital Region BOCES)

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Three Albany Police officers paid a visit to the Capital Region BOCES Career & Technical Education Center in Albany on October 6, sharing their knowledge and expertise with students in the Criminal Justice program. Officers Jan Mika, Joel Chandler, and K9 therapy dog Charlie spent more than an hour working with the students, explaining what it takes to be a police officer and teaching some of the skills of the trade, including handcuffing.

“It’s great to see the officers in uniform and have them demonstrate for us and talk about what it takes to be on the job,” said Dante Colose as he and classmates Aliyah Rahaman and Natalie Warrick learned about handcuffing from officer Mika. Colose, a Junior from Niskayuna High School, said he aspires to a career in law enforcement and appreciates the opportunity to work with, and learn from officers.

Rahaman, of Schenectady, added, “It’s great to work with the officers—hear from them about all that they do.”

There are currently 94 students from nearly two-dozen school districts enrolled in the Criminal Justice program at Capital Region BOCES for the 2022-23 school year. Working with partners in law enforcement, students learn about the history, theories, practices, and recent developments in the field of criminal justice, as well as practice the skills necessary for those careers.