The Palo Alto Police Department (PAPD) is looking for high school students interested in participating in the first ever Student Police Academy, a school designed to acquaint students with the objectives of the police in our community, and to educate them about the law enforcement profession.

"We have approximately 20 students that are interested in the program, primarily from Paly and Gunn, and we will be accepting 10 of them," Officer Marianna Villaescusa said. "We have currently accepted eight students, and are looking at two more that are likely candidates."

Through the program, students help enhance the safety and quality of their neighborhoods and schools, according to Villaescusa.

"We hope that when students get out of this program, they will be able to help us with a variety of things, such as traffic control at Stanford games, promotional events, memorials, and other thing," Villaescusa said. "Also, if something big hits the Palo Alto area, they will be able to put on their uniforms and help keep order in our community."

The Student Police Academy was originally called the Explorer’s Program, and was part of the Palo Alto Police Department over 20 years ago. The program was shut down due to budget cuts, but last year the new program was opened due to donations from the family of a slain officer.

"We originally started with very little funding for this program, but due to donations and grants we’ve managed to raise the money," Villaescusa said. "We hope to keep this program running as long as possible, in order to help the students and the community."

When students leave the academy, they will also have a variety of resources and connections that will help them throughout their lives.

"Once the students finish with this academy, it will help them throughout the rest of their lives." Villaescusa said. "Taking this program will allow the students to have connections throughout the PAPD and in other offices such as the Office of the Public Defender, which would allow them to possibly have jobs after graduating from high school."

"These kids are the best of the best, and although we hope they become police officers, they have the choice of staying with us, or just being a cadet and volunteering," Villaescusa said.

The first Student Police Academy is scheduled to begin on Feb. 7, and training will be from 4 P.M. to 6 P.M. on Wednesdayswill be held every Wednesday from 4-6 P.M.. During this 13-week program, participants will learn an overview of the elements of policing and the fundamentals of how the Palo Alto police organization works.

Topics included in this special program include officer and personal safety, investigations, traffic enforcement, forensics, crime scene investigations, and how to prepare for a law enforcement career. Additionally, all classes will be taught by current officers in the PAPD.

Candidates who are interested in this program must meet the following criteria:

Must be in high school

No felony or misdemeanor convictions

A GPA of 2.0 or higher

Acceptable school attendance

Letter of recommendation

Parent consent

If you are interested in participating in this program, you can pick out an application at http://www.papd.org/topics/student_cpa.html or at the police department headquarters, 275 Forest Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301. Or, you can fax in an application to (650) 329-2565. For more information, Call the Palo Alto Police Department at (650) 329-2406, and ask for Detective Marianna Villaescusa.