The state’s College to Law Enforcement Pathway Program (CLEPP), which was previously praised as a ray of light for prospective cops, has been suspended, casting uncertainty about the program.
The Governor Mike DeWine proposed the CLEPP project in 2020. Finding talented college students who are interested in a career in law enforcement was the aim of the program.
The program’s goal is to help law enforcement agencies overcome the difficulties they encounter in finding and keeping qualified officers, especially in light of the public’s growing need for diversity in police departments and the profession’s waning interest.
The CLEPP collaborates with Ohio’s universities, including Cedarville University and Central State University, to offer criminal justice students mentorship and specialized training. Students in the program are matched with mentors from the law enforcement community who assist in fostering their leadership abilities and preparing them for jobs in the field.
The CLEPP’s assurance of a job with a partner law enforcement agency upon graduation is one of its main features.
Taylor Smart, who completed the CLEPP at Cedarville University in 2022, is one such. The CLEPP was able to place her with the Beavercreek Police Department upon her graduation.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the police departments of Dublin, Fairfield Township, Fairview Park, Lancaster, Lebanon, Reynoldsburg, West Chester, and Xenia were among the other law enforcement organizations that were involved or were present.
Universities and police agencies were both aware of the program’s halt, which raised concerns about what it would entail for them. The once-promising effort is currently at a crossroads, with enrollment on hold and no students enrolled, leaving its future uncertain.
The suspension was verified by Misty D. Waller, the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s director of Law Enforcement Recruitment.
“The Pathway Program for College to Law Enforcement is presently on hold,” she stated in a late-January interview. “The program is not currently enrolled with any students.”
She began working in November 2023, but she didn’t know why the program was put on hold.
“There were 11 students in the program that was offered,” Waller stated, adding that when she enrolled in the program, she discovered that it was still having problems, possibly with enrollment.
The suspension of the program has wider ramifications for Ohio’s law enforcement industry, casting doubt on the state’s capacity to attract and keep skilled law enforcement personnel. Given the decreasing demand for law enforcement employment and the difficulties in attracting diverse individuals, the program’s suspension highlights the critical need for creative alternatives.
See this article from Dayton Daily News on Sinclair Police Academy for additional coverage on police academy instruction. wherein it dispatched a reporter to Sinclair for training.
Check out this AP article for additional information on the scarcity of police officers in America.