Grade 11 McMath student Sara Hudon has always been interested in law enforcement, but didn’t know how she’d go about becoming a police officer — until she was accepted to the RCMP Youth Academy. The eight-week course, which is in its fourth consecutive year, is open to students in Grades 10 through 12 and is highly competitive, with 54 applicants competing for the 37 spaces in the program.
“Students had to write an essay explaining why they wanted to pursue a career as a first responder,” said Const. Adam Carmichael, youth officer with the Richmond RCMP. “We’re not just looking for RCMP members, we’re looking for military, BC Ambulance, Fire and Rescue and others, too. We accepted 13 girls and 24 boys, which reflects the women-to-men ratio in the RCMP right now.”
Youth academy participants received a variety of presentations from different first responders. A tactical troop sergeant with the riot team allowed them to try on her gear. A plain clothes inspector discussed human trafficking and undercover work, while the canine unit described working with a dog and laboratory services explained urine analysis. Students got to take their own fingerprints, handle moulds used in forensic investigations and learned some of the drill movements that RCMP officers are taught at depot.
There were up to three presenters each week in the three-hour sessions, and the kids were fully engaged, Carmichael said.
The 37 candidates selected were “strongly motivated individuals,” he added. “I wish youth academy had been around when I was a kid — because I would have joined the force earlier had I been involved in something like this at school.”
Hudon described youth academy as a once-in-a-lifetime experience that gives students a chance to see what’s out there. “It isn’t all police cars and sirens,” she said. The presenters treated us as young adults, not children, which I really appreciated. This course has taught me so much, and I’d recommend it to anyone who is even just considering law enforcement. It gave me a preview of what my life could be!”
