Learn, Protect & Serve

When Ivan Bozovic immigrated to the United States from Serbia in 2000, he experienced a wealth of opportunity. After receiving a college scholarship, running his own business and becoming a citizen, Bozovic sought to give back to his adopted homeland by serving his community as a police officer.

Hired by the Grapevine Police Department in 2014, he underwent training at Tarrant County College’s Police Academy. As the cornerstone of TCC’s Criminal Justice Training Center, the program gave Bozovic a foundation in law enforcement that will carry him through his career.

“There is a lot to learn in a short amount of time, and TCC’s (Police) Academy has the right tools to prepare you,” said Bozovic. “There is infrastructure and technology, but most importantly, the Academy has great instructors. Many of them have decades of real police experience and are able to deliver the information in a way that makes sense and stays with you.”

TCC’s Police Academy, located at the Northwest Campus, graduates around 125 cadets annually, with each class running at capacity. Some enroll in preparation to apply as an officer, and most students, like Bozovic, are hired by a local police force that doesn’t have its own academy — common for small and mid-sized cities.

“As a college, TCC has a strong ability to train recruits, and we offer many resources such as student services and testing centers,” says Arrick Jackson, NW vice president of Community & Industry Education services. “The municipalities that send us their new hires have a strong sense of trust in TCC’s Police Academy.”

That trust is well placed. The Academy has a 100 percent first-attempt pass rate on the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement licensing exam going back to 2009, and the academic retention rate has stayed at 100 percent since 2013. Cadets get extensive classroom and hands-on learning experiences including physical tactics, use of a state-of-the-art firing range, a police driving course and more. The program includes more than 700 hours of training over 19 weeks.

The strong interest in TCC’s program continues despite recent high-profile police controversies. Officer-involved shootings have sparked a contentious dialogue across the country about race relations and the use of deadly force by police.

Randall Petersen, director of the Criminal Justice Training Center, uses those headlines to better prepare his cadets. However, he says the situations in the media do not reflect the vast majority of officers’ experiences on the streets.

“Our nation’s police officers have contact with thousands of individuals daily. The fact that sensational media events are rare is a testament to the professionalism those men and women continuously display,” noted Petersen.

The controversies have not changed the overall view of law enforcement, according to Marvin Dulaney, chair of the history department at the University of Texas at Arlington.

“Becoming a police officer is still a very good and secure job,” said Dulaney, who has extensively studied the profession.

Petersen notes almost all officers have a strong and sincere desire to serve others. “Most police officers aren’t easily discouraged,” he explained. “They really don’t need recognition to do their jobs well.”

It does not surprise Wafeeq Sabir, adjunct instructor of sociology and criminal justice at TCC, that the controversies have not diminished interest in policing. In fact, Sabir believes those incidents may actually draw more people to the profession.

“You have individuals who see a separation between law enforcement and the citizens they protect, and they want to bridge that gap to make a positive difference,” said Sabir, who retired from the Fort Worth Police Department after 25 years of service.

Sabir recognizes a need for more minority candidates to explore a career in policing so as to foster deeper trust between officers and the public. When I take part in career days at high schools, I encourage African-American, Hispanic and female students to think about law enforcement,” he said. “I tell them, “If you’re not happy with what you see in your community, you can change it. If you don’t do it, who will?’”

TCC has trained recruits since the Criminal Justice Training Center opened in 1980. Cities that send new officers to the College say having a centralized training program benefits them both economically and strategically. The cities do not have the financial cost of operating individual academies; in addition, officers working for different agencies have the same education and often know one other from their time at the Academy, facilitating cross-agency assistance.

Most notably, departments that partner with TCC are pleased with the quality of graduating cadets. “It’s the level of discipline they instill in the recruits,” noted Sgt. Robert Eberling with the Grapevine Police Department. “TCC is very regimented with its processes and what it requires of recruits, and that’s beneficial to officers on the streets.”

Every time Grapevine Officer Bozovic puts on his badge, he thinks about that discipline and what led him to police work in the first place.

“I always wanted to be there for people who need help,” he reflected. “When you help someone, that person remembers it forever. That can start a domino effect, and the world becomes a better place. That’s what drew me in.”

TCC’s Criminal Justice Training Center provides professional development and continuing education for working officers in addition to the Police Academy. For more information, call 817-515-7760.