IUPD offers officer training to students

It seems everybody played cops and robbers as a child, holding a plastic gun and sprinting after a buddy while screaming, "Freeze! Police. Put up your hands!" \nTo some students, these are memories better left in the past. For others, these games were the beginning of a career in law enforcement.\nThe IU Police Department generally seeks 25-30 students each year who wish to become certified police officers. To several students, the program was an obvious choice. \n"I think the most important thing about school is what you do during your years here, not exactly what you study," Cadet Bob Murphy, a junior, said. "We are here to build our future, and that is why I am with the IUPD cadet program."\nLt. Greg Butler is the head officer of the student program at IUPD.\n"Anyone interested in law enforcement could become involved in the academy," Butler said. "The person must demonstrate that he or she can take on commitments and interact with the public in an appropriate manner." \nApplications are available at campus headquarters or through the IUPD Web site, www.indiana.edu/~iupd. Training begins in May and lasts about 12 weeks.\nDuring training, cadets are given instruction to operate the IDACS, a computer dispatch system that accesses files from the National Crime Center, during routine stops and apprehensions. \nTrainees will learn to use emergency devices such as defibrillators. This unit is often used in ambulances to send electronic impulses through patients' bodies. \nThose who complete the training are recognized the first week in August.\nUpon receiving certification, graduates must serve one academic year as a cadet. This can include working security for campus libraries and sporting events, but the IUPD recognizes cadet priorities. "They provide you with ample time to schedule and put academics first," Murphy said.\nOfficer Nick Ojeda, a junior, recently became registered through IUPD. \n"My regular duties at IUPD are patrolling the dorms," Ojeda said. "I usually am involved in medical assist calls, and of course, we often have to enforce the University's dry campus policies."\nAfter completing time as a cadet, students are encouraged to work part-time 12-20 hours a week as Indiana law enforcement officers. \n"It's hard to distinguish part-time from full," Butler said. "They're dressed in the same uniforms and do the same duties."\nCertification as an IUPD officer accents student resumes and provides adequate job experience, Murphy said. \n"It is a great part-time job while attending school," Murphy said. "If you are at all interested in law enforcement of any type, it will definitely show you the ropes." \nOfficer and student Philip Muhlenkamp said he has experienced several difficult encounters while working routine shifts.\n"On two separate occasions, a call of a man having a gun was dispatched. Without hesitation, every officer in that area was out looking for that man," Muhlenkamp said. "I didn't think twice about the fact that a guy with a gun could shoot me and take my life. I would have to credit that to my training at the academy."\nFBI agents, marshals and various other positions of the criminal justice hierarchy send associates to recruit from the IUPD. \n"Compared to a degree, your marketability is very much enhanced through the student academy," Butler said. "It's a good first step"