Lt. Gov. Coleman, Department of Criminal Justice Celebrate the 100th Class Graduation of the Academy of Police Supervision
On September 27, Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman and the Department of Criminal Justice Training (DOCJT) announced that 24 law enforcement officers from agencies across the commonwealth graduated the 100th class of the Academy of Police Supervision (APS).
“Thank you for accepting the challenge of leadership,” Lt. Gov. Coleman said. “To the graduates of class 100, you are now among the nearly 2,100 law enforcement leaders who have successfully completed this rigorous course. You are ready to take the skills you’ve learned and create safer communities. Thank you for your service and we pray for your safety daily.”
APS, also called the sergeant’s academy, is a three-week, 122-hour training program targeted for newly promoted sergeants or officers who are on their agency’s promotion list to become sergeants. The academy was launched in 2003 as one of DOCJT’s leadership courses aimed at developing and shaping future and current leaders in law enforcement agencies across the commonwealth. The training program provides a deep dive into how to positively influence groups of people, as well as how to apply situational leadership, demonstrate an understanding of constitutional and administrative law, emotional and social intelligence, ethical decision-making, problem-solving, emotional survival and public speaking.
“The APS program is an invaluable first step in leadership training,” DOCJT Deputy Commissioner Mike Bosse said. “I am excited to see how you will take this knowledge back to your departments and use it to encourage and strengthen the ranks you lead.”
APS Class 100 graduates and their agencies are:
Austen D. Anderson
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
Dustin M. Bevil
Murray Police Department
Jeremy Bolton
Boone County Sheriff’s Office
Thomas Breitmeyer
Shively Police Department
Michael A. Coty
St. Matthews Police Department
Edward J. Dettmer IV
Erlanger Police Department
Robert Dieman
Campbell County Police Department
John E. Duncan
Scottsville Police Department
James A. Endicott
Covington Police Department
Marc Goetz
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office
Logan Henry
Boone County Sheriff’s Office
Hunter Hinton
Owensboro Police Department
David M. Ingle
Frankfort Police Department
Stephen Jordan Lyons
Versailles Police Department
Jennie McShane
Bowling Green Police Department
Ronald J. Overstreet
Nicholasville Police Department
Brian Powers
Covington Police Department
Mathew J. Rue
Nicholasville Police Department
Austin A. Smith
Elizabethtown Police Department
Bryan Richard Tipton
Prestonsburg Police Department
Spencer T. Turner
Christian County Sheriff’s Office
Shawn N. Wallace
Frankfort Police Department
Brandon Wallen
Georgetown Police Department
Paul C. Yezzo
Fayette County Sheriff’s Office
DOCJT is a state agency located on Eastern Kentucky University’s campus. The agency is the first in the nation to be accredited under the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies’ public safety training program designation.
DOCJT is nationally accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). CALEA is seeking public input regarding DOCJT’s compliance with CALEA standards, engagement in the service community, delivery of public safety services, and overall candidacy for accredited status. Click here to submit comments.
Beshear-Coleman Administration Commitment to Making Kentucky a National Leader in Public Safety
The Beshear-Coleman administration’s top priority is the safety of all Kentuckians. The Governor's public safety actions are creating safer communities and a better Kentucky.
In September, Gov. Andy Beshear announced the historic expansion of law enforcement basic training into Western Kentucky. The Department of Criminal Justice Training is launching a two-phase project to provide immediate, improved access to law enforcement training. Phase one will begin in February 2025 with a class of 24 recruits who will attend Basic Training in a Madisonville non-residential academy. The first phase is made possible because of robust partnerships with the city of Madisonville, which is providing facilities for the phase-one launch. Phase two includes the construction of administrative classroom and multipurpose training buildings funded by the $50 million legislative allotment to construct a Western Kentucky DOCJT campus.
Since taking office, Gov. Andy Beshear has awarded nearly $12 million in grant funding to assist state and local law enforcement agencies with enhancing public and officer safety, curbing the sale of illegal drugs and fighting addiction. As the administration remains committed to removing illicit drugs and further decreasing drug overdose deaths, in Sept. Gov. Beshear awarded more than $1.7 million in grant funding to Kentucky’s law enforcement, drug task forces and nonprofit organizations to purchase critical resources, provide drug prevention programming to community residents, offer counseling to crime victims, ensure officers receive specialized training and work with individuals leaving incarceration for successful reentry skills.
Last year, the Governor proposed a $500 increase to the law enforcement annual training stipend, but the General Assembly chose to provide a combined $262 increase over the next two years. The budget signed by the Governor raises the training stipend to an all-time high of $4,562 by fiscal year 2026. Additionally, the Governor is providing part-time law enforcement officers an annual training stipend for the first time in the history of the commonwealth.
In July 2023, Gov. Beshear broke ground in Richmond on a new law enforcement training facility named in honor of Jody Cash, who lost his life in the line of duty May 16, 2022, while serving as chief deputy of the Calloway County Sheriff’s Department. Members of the Cash family, as well as state and local officials and staff from the DOCJT, joined the Governor in taking a step forward to enhance the safety of Kentucky’s nearly 8,000 peace officers who risk their lives every day to protect Kentucky families.
In June 2022, Gov. Beshear announced the Military to Law Enforcement Program (M-2-LE). M-2-LE allows local law enforcement agencies in Kentucky to hire active service members within all U.S. military branches during their last 180 days of service. Upon being contracted by a law enforcement agency, the military member will continue to receive their pay and benefits from the U.S. Military while they undergo law enforcement training at the Department of Criminal Justice Training.
