10-Week Law Enforcement Officer Pre-Academy Created in South Carolina
(Conway) – Horry-Georgetown Technical College (HGTC) has partnered with the Horry County Police Department to offer a pre-academy for law enforcement officer candidates, making it one of only two pre-academy locations in South Carolina. The 10-week pre-academy is modeled directly after the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy (SCCJA) and prepares future officers for success once they enter the academy.
“Horry County Police Department is excited to see the continued growth of the HGTC criminal justice program, and its efforts to establish a regional criminal justice academy,” said Horry County Police Chief Joseph Hill. “Our department, as well as many others in the state, are in great need of a more readily available training option for our recruits. With gratitude, we would like to acknowledge the efforts HGTC has already made alongside HCPD, and other regional law enforcement agencies, to put a pre-academy training program in place on its campus.
Establishing a full-fledged regional training facility in Horry County would further ensure that our community has the officers it needs to continue to safely and securely grow into the future.”
HGTC dean Dr. Wysong agrees.
Through the pre-academy, candidates receive training that meets and, in some cases, even exceeds the basic law enforcement training they would receive at SCCJA in Columbia.
HGTC criminal justice professors and certified trained instructors from the Horry County Police Department lead the training and cover topics including use of force training, physical fitness/agilities, crisis intervention, the judicial process, criminal law, vehicle operations and traffic stops, and patrol operations. Students also spend one day per week in field training observation with their sponsoring agency, which is a unique feature of the program. It provides candidates exposure and training to their future employer before even entering the academy. Horry County Police Department, the City of Loris Police Department, and the City of Conway Police department all have candidates enrolled in this program.
