Vt. Police Academy holds graduation for new recruits

PITTSFIELD, Vt. (WCAX) – More than 30 new police recruits Friday traded their training gear for badges as they were sworn in as the 117th recruit class to graduate from the Vermont Police Academy.

“Born to serve, trained to protect” were the words recited by the 117th basic recruit class at the Vermont Police Academy Friday.

The 31 recruits officially walked out the doors on their way to serve as the state’s newest law enforcement officers.

“It’s a great feeling to graduate. I’m excited to get back out on the road and help my community. It’s a building block. I’ve learned that without the people I’ve had here, without my fellow classmates, there’s no way we would have been as successful as we were,” said Hinesburg Police Ofc. Andrew Thomas.

Inside, each recruit was given a certificate while family members helped to pin on their badge. Class president and newest Vermont State Trooper Michael Robidoux told his classmates that the work they’re going to do will have an impact. “Never forget that it matters — giving back to this great state and the community, protecting some of the most vulnerable members of society, and showing up on potentially the worst day of someone’s life. It matters,” he said.

This graduation comes as many departments throughout the state say they’re still struggling to recruit new officers. The VSP says they welcomed in four new troopers with this class but it will take more to fill all their vacancies. “Our goal is consistently to put out as big of a class as possible, and we try to get up to 20 people per class. Seeing back-to-back or repeated classes of that size will definitely start to put a dent in the problems with retention or attrition,” said VSP Lt. Robert McKenna.

While these recruits have completed their training at the academy, they’ll now go through additional training at their respective departments

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