(Lawrenceville, Georgia)  The Gwinnett County Police Department is proud to announce that we will be hosting our first-ever summer Youth Police Academy.  The Youth Police Academy has been established to give teens interested in a career in law enforcement a behind-the-scenes look at how we make police officers.  The GCPD Youth Police Academy is scheduled for July 25^th – 29^th, 2016.  The Academy will be hosted at the Gwinnett County Police Training Center located at 854 Winder Highway in Lawrenceville. 

The Youth Police Academy will include classroom instruction, team building, and character development.  The topics will range from uniform patrol, criminal investigations, crime scene investigations, traffic stops, firearms safety, gangs and narcotics awareness.  In addition to classroom instruction attendees will also have the opportunity to participate in hands-on demonstrations of basic defensive tactics and crime scene processing.  The academy will also include guided tours of police headquarters, the 911 Communications Center, and the jail.  Other outdoor activities will include demonstrations from the Motors Unit, K9, Aviation, SWAT, and EOD.

Interested applicants will be required to handwrite an essay explaining why they are interested in attending the GCPD Youth Police Academy.  The essay should be approximately 100 words.  There will be a maximum of 30 students in the academy and preference will be given to Gwinnett County residents.  Applicants must be at least 13 years old by the first day of academy and must not be older than 17 years old on the last day of academy. 

For their attendance and hard work during the GCPD Youth Police Academy attendees will receive a Gwinnett County Police Department Youth Police Academy t-shirt, a GCPD water bottle, and a certificate of completion at graduation.

The completed packet must be mailed, faxed, or emailed to Sgt. Michael Marchese at the GCPD Training Center no later than Thursday, June 30^th.

Link to YPA Packet (guidelines, waiver, and forms): https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nn1nxpsrtsp4azg/AACbeOGuvFrgGhLWIxRRY7FFa?dl=0