COLORADO SPRINGS — 67 men and women from the 73rd recruit class graduated on Thursday from the Colorado Springs Police Department’s (CSPD) Training Academy after 29 weeks of intensive training.
Some facts about the graduating class include:
15 graduates can speak another language besides EnglishThey come from 23 different states, as well as other countries, including the UK, Poland, Puerto Rico, Korea, Germany, Iraq, Guam, Ukraine, and the Philippines33 graduates have served, or are currently serving, in the Armed ForcesTwo hold Master’s degrees, 31 hold Bachelor’s degrees, 8 hold Associate’s degrees, and the remaining graduates have some form of college experienceFour are lateral recruits, and a total of 13 have prior law enforcement experience
For one graduate, police work is a family affair.
“My dad has been with the County Sheriff’s department for 30 years. And so I just… it was a rush of emotion. I think I cried up here a little bit seeing my kids, my newly engaged fiancé. So it was amazing and made me the happiest person I’ve ever known to be, the greatest day of my life so far, so. Maybe when my son was born,” CSPD Officer Katlyn Gallardo, CSPD Academy graduate.
Every new officer has successfully passed their Colorado Peace Officer Standards Test (POST) certification and is ready to begin their service to our community. After graduation, the cadets will spend the next 15 weeks in additional training before they start responding to calls on their own.
