KU News Service
YODER – University of Kansas Public Management Center Director Charles Jones congratulated 57 new law enforcement officers during their graduation from the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center earlier this month.
The new officers were members of the 228th basic training class at the center. Located near Hutchinson, the center is a division of KU Continuing Education.
The graduates, who began their training Jan. 27, represented 44 municipal, county and state law enforcement agencies from across Kansas.
Graduates receive certificates of course completion from KLETC and Kansas law enforcement certification from the Kansas Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training, the state’s law enforcement licensing authority. The training course fulfills the state requirement for law enforcement training. Classroom lectures and hands-on applications help train officers to solve the increasingly complex problems they face in the line of duty.
Established by the Kansas Legislature in 1968, the center trains the majority of municipal, county and state law enforcement officers in Kansas and oversees the training of the remaining officers at seven authorized and certified academy programs operated by local law enforcement agencies and the Kansas Highway Patrol.
About 300 officers enroll annually in the 14-week basic training program. The center offered continuing education and specialized training to as many as 5,600 Kansas officers each year. Funding for the training center is generated from court docket fees from municipal and state courts. No funds from the state’s general revenue are used to operate the center.
Northwest Kansas graduates include:
Hays Police Department; Evan Cronn; patrol officer; Hays
Hays Police Department; Charles Leake; patrol officer; Hays
Hays Police Department; Zachary Muckenthaler; patrol officer; Hays
Oakley Police Department; Ryan Leitner; patrol officer; Oakley
Logan County Sheriff’s Department; Dustin Little; deputy; Oakley
Phillips County Sheriff’s Department; Lee Vogel; deputy; Phillipsburg
Atwood Police Department; Tyler Knapp; patrol officer; Atwood
Sheridan County Sheriff’s Department; Amy Streit; deputy; Hoxie