State Center Used Grant To Build A Peace Officer Pipeline

McKenna Link has always admired police officers. But for a long time, she believed that her status as a 5-foot, 2-inch woman with a high-pitched voice kept her from seriously considering law enforcement as a viable career opportunity.

“It’s something that I completely wrote off, but it’s something that I always wanted to do if given the chance,” she said.

Link, at the urging of some female law enforcement acquaintances, last year decided to take that chance when she learned of a reserve peace officer training program operated though the State Center Police Department. Funded through a Future Ready Iowa Grant, the two three-month academies in 2021 provided more than 50 would-be officers with free training, lodging and, in some cases, child care to attend classes from across Iowa.

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