Sioux City Police Department opens applications for 2024 Youth Academy

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU) — Siouxland students will get to experience a learning path for their potential futures with the 2024 Youth Academy.

The academy is organized by the Sioux City Police Department and Volunteer Coordinator Rita Donnelly. Incoming freshmen through senior students in high school will get to learn about careers in the field of law enforcement. In the academy, students are taught various topics such as defensive driving, traffic stops, and defensive tactics, with demonstrations by the K-9 unit and SWAT team.

Sioux City Police Sergeant Tom Gill said that the academy teaches students to be knowledgeable about the duties of a police officer.

“The goal of our Youth Academy is for the youth in Sioux City to get a better understanding of the police department, and it’s also a recruiting tool that we like to use,” Gill said. “We can show these kids at a younger age what it’s like to be a police officer, and all the fun things you can do. And hopefully, one day they can be a Sioux City police officer.”

The Youth Academy has been expanding students’ minds with knowledge and potential future goals in Sioux City for over 20 years.

“Students can learn what it’s like to be a police officer here in Sioux City,” Gill said. “They’ll get to experience what it’s like to be a detective, what it’s like to be a patrol officer, what it’s like to work in the vice unit, what it’s like to work in the K-9 unit, to be a SWAT team member. They’ll get to see all of that firsthand and ask questions.”

According to a press release, the academy is offered to students who are at least 14 years old, and it’s much more than just a boot camp.

“The students will get to gear up in SWAT gear and ride in our SWAT Vehicles, as well as do a mock scenario like it was a SWAT callout,” Gill said.

The full schedule can be seen below:

• Wednesday, May 22, 2024, from 6:00 p.m. to 8 :00 p.m. (SCPD 601 Douglas)
• Wednesday, May 29, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. (SCPD 601 Douglas)
• Wednesday, June 5, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. (National Training Center near the airport)
• Wednesday, June 12, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. (SCPD 601 Douglas)
• Wednesday, June 19, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. (National Training Center near the airport)
• Wednesday, June 26, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. (Western Iowa Tech Community College campus)

Applications are available through school resource officers or the guidance offices at all Sioux City high schools, as well as the Sioux City Police Department. The deadline is May 3, 2024, with space limited to 22 students.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to SiouxlandProud | Sioux City, IA | News, Weather, and Sports.