Pueblo receives nearly $800k grant to train and recruit police officers
Pueblo City Council approved a nearly $800,000 grant for recruiting and training law enforcement officers over the next two years in a 6-0 vote Monday evening.
The goal of the State’s Mission for Assistance in Recruiting and Training (SMART) Grant Program, provided by the Colorado Office of Adult and Juvenile Assistance, is to provide grants to law enforcement agencies to increase the number of P.O.S.T.-certified and non-certified law enforcement officers who are representative of the communities they serve and to provide training for those additional law enforcement officers, according to the grant.
“We are extremely grateful to be awarded this grant," Pueblo Police Chief Chris Noeller said in a news release. "We have specific plans in the works to use these grant funds to help with recruitment and training. Nationally, and specifically in Colorado, the recruitment of police officers is very competitive. This grant will enable us to find and recruit quality candidates to serve the citizens of Pueblo.”
The largest individual chunk of the $791,811 provided by the grant will fund the creation of four intern positions, with $426,240 for the program and $106,560 in funding for each position.
"People that are in school and want to know, 'Do I want to be a policeman?' It gives them an opportunity to intern with us," said Sgt. Frank Ortega, a Pueblo police spokesperson. "It's a paid internship, and it gives them exposure to us without having to commit to applying with us and doing the job. At the same time, if they like it and apply, we still have positions available to put people in those intern positions.
While the department will start with four internship positions, that number may be expanded in the future, Ortega said. Interns will perform a variety of duties, including training, assisting officers at the police department, and general orientation to life at the department, he said.
Of the allotted grant funds, $231,000 will go to the training of 21 officers through the Pueblo police academy, which is expected to fill gaps in the police department amid ongoing staffing issues. Ortega stated that the most recent update he received showed the department was short 52 officers.
Ortega noted that while there isn't much attrition in the police academy itself, the department often loses a few officers during the field training process that takes place after the academy. However, attrition rates vary, Ortega said.
"It mostly just depends on the people we get in the academy," he said.
Other expenses covered by the grant include marketing and recruiting materials, travel for recruiting officers in other locations throughout the state of Colorado and around the country, as well as other expenses related to recruitment, as broken down in Pueblo City Council minutes from Feb. 26.
In the news release, Mayor Heather Graham also praised the program.
“This SMART grant offers the support needed for recruiting more officers with the Pueblo Police Department,” Graham said in the release. “We will continue to look for innovative and proactive ways to increase training and recruitment to address our officer shortage."
Ortega noted that the grant covers just fiscal years 2024 and 2025, and will expire after that period.
"If it's available, we'll apply again," he said.
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This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo police to revamp officer recruitment, training with $800k grant
