By Madison Willis
Rapid City Journal
RAPID CITY, S.D. — After attending a school in Montana for a Computer Science degree, Tegan Tucker always had a deep sense of doing something more with his future.
The drive to make a difference continued to eat at him after transferring to the University of Wyoming for a Wildlife and Fisheries Biology and Management degree.
Tucker began to think back to when he was a kid watching his father put on his badge and head out to protect the community. Tucker laughed at the memory of being so in awe of his father that he dressed up as a cop for Halloween for five years in a row.
But despite the passion and innate calling to the role, Tucker couldn’t help but wonder if law enforcement was the path he wanted. That is until he heard of an internship program in Rapid City.
“I always wanted to try different things and figure out who I want to be in the future. But being in law enforcement has always been in the back of mind as something I wanted to do,” Tucker said.
To assist young adults like Tucker figure out their calling and boost recruitment within law enforcement, the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office decided to host its first-ever summer internship program.
PCSO Human Resources manager Nikki Farrar said one of the big reasons they’re seeing fewer young people applying to be deputies is that a lot of them simply can’t wait until they’re old enough to be hired.
For the state of South Dakota, the applicant for the position should be at least 21 years of age.
“What we’re seeing is that kids are graduating from high school and then they don’t want to or are unable to wait those three years to begin their career. So they end up searching for a different career path,” Farrar said.
According to a 2023 study by the Police Executive Research Forum, the number of sworn officers across the nation had decreased by 1.76%. The study also detailed that between 2020 and 2021 resignation rates increased by 18% and retirement rates increased by 45%.
Concurrently, the influx of new recruits dwindled from 27% to 60% depending on the area. The staffing crisis impacted agencies unevenly, hitting departments in the Midwest and West harder than the national average.
The pilot program began after the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office collaborated with the National Fraternal Order of Police to get a $170,000 grant from the Department of Justice. Farrar said they are still working out a few details on how the program should look in the future, however this summer has been promising.
“The real intent of this is to get kids ages 18 to 21 interested in law enforcement and keep them in that career,” Farrar said.
In the program, interns are paid $18 an hour to explore every aspect of the legal system. Farrar said the goal of the program is to not only inspire new recruits within the sheriff’s office but to also expand the public’s understanding of every aspect within the legal system.
“When people think of law enforcement they often think of our deputies patrolling on the streets. But we also have the Pennington County Jail , juvenile services and Care Campus. All of these supporting systems benefit the community,” Farrar said.
Interns were given 12 weeks to participate and learn from every division within the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office. However, they were also able to expand their understanding for roles such as correctional officers, prosecutors from the State’s Attorney’s Office and even the custodial crew.
Between maintaining buildings and shooting practice, the interns are given homework to evaluate their experience of the program.
Participants are required to be at least 18 years old, pass a background check, and demonstrate a passion for law.
Six interns participated in this year’s program and graduated Aug. 1 . Farrar said the goal is to host this program every year to eventually expand the class size when they get more funding.
Grasping tightly onto his graduation certificate, Tucker has found a new sense of purpose. Tucker said his future is still undetermined as he finishes college, however, having the opportunity to learn every aspect of the sheriff’s office had certainly ignited a new fire in his heart.
(c)2024 Rapid City Journal, S.D.
Visit Rapid City Journal, S.D. at http://www.rapidcityjournal.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
