The Amarillo Police Department (APD) hosted its first-ever women's recruitment job fair, in hopes to gain more female officers and raise interest in the police academy, Saturday morning at the Amarillo Museum of Art (AMoA) from 8 to 11 a.m.

Within the first 30 minutes, APD had approximately seven women attend the recruitment event, with several applications made. APD Public Information Officer Carla Burr was excited to see the early morning involvement. According to Burr, the department currently has approximately 370 officers, with 40 of them being women, and would like to have more women in the force to more accurately reflect our community.

Burr said the event was about taking away any barriers that women may have when it comes to recruiting. To remove those barriers, the department had several female officers on hand who could share their experiences in the force a and walk potential recruits through the initial application. To also help remove a few barriers for mother applicants, high school police explorers Haylee Hollar, Bailey Dunn and Abigail Barrow were in attendance, monitoring and engaging with children in the AMoA play area.

"I advise everyone, not just those who are looking to becoming an officer, to find what makes you happy and can fulfill what you want out of life and just go for it," APD Officer Cecely Herr said. "I remember when I was just beginning the process, and I thought, do I really want this? And at that age, I feel we put a lot of fear in front of us, those mental barriers of doubt. Don't listen to the doubt, and just try until you can't. Take it one step at a time. Honestly the hardest step is just applying."

In addition, APD provided all the information discussing qualification needs, automatic disqualifications, estimated salaries, benefits and frequently asked questions. To become an Amarillo police officer, there are several initial interviews that must be passed before attending the 7-month police academy. That process includes the initial application online, pre-interview, written examination, physical readiness test, background investigation, truth verification exam, interview board, chiefs interview, medical examination, and psychological examination, leading to the police academy.

According to Burr, although the process may seem intimidating at first, it can be taken one step at a time, and becoming an officer does not require any educational pre-requisites.

"You don't have to have a degree in law enforcement; mine isn't in law enforcement. We'll teach you everything you need to know in the academy. So, if you are not going to school, it's not required, as long as you have your high school diploma or GED with 12 hours of college. We just want people, today specifically women, but people who have a heart for service to their community, and we will provide everything else from that," Burr said.

Herr spoke about why she loves being an APD officer, and she encourages those considering the career path to just apply.

"I love that I am challenged every day; I face challenges every day," Herr said. "I feel like I have this purpose in my life, by helping people and making a difference in my community. Living in the community I grew up in and making the smallest difference to make the city a little bit safer, that's what I love."

"You can do and be anything you want. You can have a baby and have this career. I have a 5-month-old right now. You can be a mom and be an officer. You can do anything you want. I'm still out here taking bad guys down with cute lipstick on and you can too, but you have to take that first step and apply," Herr added.

APD encourages those seeking information to reach out to the department, which looks forward to hosting more female recruitment events.

APD will conduct a Basic Police Academy Civil Service Entrance Exam on Saturday, Feb. 25, prior to the beginning of the 101st police academy, scheduled later in May. The application deadline is Feb. 21 at 5 p.m.

Applications can be submitted online at https://www.amarillopolice.org/join-amarillo-police-department .

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo Police Dept. hosts first women officers recruitment fair