Junior Police Academy motivates young people to be outstanding citizens through law enforcement education. An outgrowth of community policing, JPA transforms the traditional role of the police officer into one of mentor and friend, while encouraging our young citizens to be partners, not adversaries, in building safer schools and communities.
Since 1992, the Junior Police Academy has been bringing the world of law enforcement into the nation’s classrooms — coordinating and directing the efforts of police departments and educators in this relatively new field of study.
“We have created a program that transforms police officers from merely
responding to crime to being a powerful, pro-active force in creating a safe, crime-free learning environment,” says spokesperson Phil LeConte. “On school campuses where JPA has been introduced, the drop in crime has been remarkable.”
Transformed
“Young people do not understand what police officers do and why they do it. They don’t understand the role of law enforcement in a community,” observes Officer Mitchell Garcia of the Houston Police Department. “But when we take the mystery out of law enforcement procedures and policies — young people’s attitudes toward police and their role in society is transformed”
Tomorrow’s Leaders
Targeting middle school and high school students, the program is a police academy for young people. While our graduates are not police officers, they are the community leaders of tomorrow — instilled with an appreciation and respect for law enforcers and their role in society.

DONATE ONLINE