Holland College | APA, CBU, and regional police build partnership
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APA, CBU, and regional police build partnership

Partnerships often come and go, but when they work well, the key is to keep them going successfully. Today, the partnerships between the Cape Breton Regional Police Service (CBRPS) and CBU, and the Atlantic Police Academy (APA) and CBU were renewed meaning increased educational opportunities for current and potential police officers.

This model of cooperation between the partners is driven by the desire to improve education for police officers which then benefits the communities that they serve.

"Today speaks to true working partnerships," said Dr. Anthony Secco, Vice-President, Academic at Cape Breton University. "The relationships and programming options have grown and have proven to be winners for Cape Breton University, the Atlantic Police Academy, the Cape Breton Regional Police Service and most importantly for the officers and students."

The agreement between CBU and the CBRPS, first established in 2000, includes advanced standing for police officers in the Bachelor of Arts Community Studies (BACS) program. CBU's first degree program can be completed on campus, via distance education or a combination of both. The agreement also provides work placements within the CBRPS for BACS students. In many police forces, a university degree will be required to achieve higher-level positions.

New credit and non-credit courses have been designed to provide specific skill sets valuable to police and those seeking to become police officers. These include the Police Preparatory course which has been offered successfully five times, and the new Certificate in Crime Prevention through Social Development. The new certificate is designed for police officers and others working in crime prevention in Canada and is offered through distance education.

"The Cape Breton Regional Police Service's mission to serve and protect our community has become increasingly complex. The daily challenges faced by our police officers are becoming more complex. The Memorandum of Understanding between the Cape Breton Regional Police Service and Cape Breton University provides our current and future police officers with the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to meet these challenges. I am confident our collective efforts will help build stronger, safer and healthier communities," states Edgar MacLeod, Chief of Police, Cape Breton Regional Police Service.

The agreement between CBU and the Atlantic Police Academy, originally signed in 2001, has seen CBU accepting academy graduates into the BACS program with advanced standing. The APA will accept the Police Preparatory course, and work with CBU to promote the BACS program and other potential education offerings to their cadets.

Les Chipperfield, Executive Director of the Atlantic Police Academy explains, "The partnership between the Atlantic Police Academy and Cape Breton University has been mutually beneficial. Through distance learning, graduates from our Academy can pursue completion of a degree. This enhances the true professionalization of the policing profession."

Numbers speak to the success of the partnerships. Since the partnerships were established, 75 students have participated in the Police Preparatory course which assists students in preparation for a career as a police officer. This program is taught by a combination of CBU faculty and staff, CBRPS police officers, and the RCMP and includes police ethics, community policing, human rights, physical fitness, identification and forensics, and family violence training. Additionally, students engage in range training (firearms), drill training (marching), and more.

Ten known police or RCMP officers have graduated with the BACS degree and ten more are currently enrolled. More than 20 Island police officers have worked with students during their work terms.

Today's gathering included a number of graduates. Inspector Myles Burke (CBRPS) is a BACS graduate and Police Preparatory course instructor who is also involved with the University as a member of the Board of Governors and the Policing Advisory Committee. He was joined by Constable A.J. MacIsaac, an Atlantic Police Academy graduate, Police Preparatory course student and a BACS degree student.

The BACS Degree provides a process-oriented experiential degree program through the combination of a core program focusing on problem-solving, critical thinking, applied research, and community intervention, with an academic orientation in the traditional arts disciplines. It also provides for the inclusion of courses from science and technology-related disciplines and is considered to be the only one of its kind in Canada.

For more information contact:
Kelly Rose
Communications Officer
Cape Breton University
902-563-1638
kelly_rose@capebretonu.ca

or
Maria Driscoll
Foundation and Corporate Communications
Holland College
902-566-9615
mdriscoll@hollandc.pe.ca

For more information about this release, please contact:
Sara Underwood, Media and Communications Officer
Tel: 902-566-9695
Date: Wednesday, January 04, 2006