CJ Students in the Portland PD
University day is a fun event that only comes once a year. Normal classes are not held on University day, but students who dare to enter a classroom voluntarily have a chance to learn something new. One lecture focusing on UMPI’s criminal justice program was called ”CJ in ME.”
CJ in ME gave criminal justice students, led by Dr. Lisa Leduc, a chance to share some insight into what they have learned and experienced. These students can’t learn all they need to know from textbooks, so they got opportunities to gain some hands-on training at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. “The students in the CJ Club had a packed long weekend going up and down the state, from Augusta to Portland and back up to Bangor. They always get a lot out of the trainings and ride alongs,” Lisa Leduc, CJ professor said.
There students had the unique challenge of breaking out of a mock escape room. The students agreed that this was not an easy task. The room only has a 10 percent escape rate, but that didn’t stop one UMPI group from earning its fictional freedom just in time. They were able to decipher the riddles and clues provided by the academy.
Students also got the option of riding along with an officer on duty. Nobody knows what kind of ride they will get, ranging from mundane traffic stops to suicide attempts, unintended deaths and robberies. No doubt learning some invaluable tips on what it takes to be a successful officer, these students can get a feel for the everyday duties required of them once they wear their own badge.
By talking to police officers, UMPI’s CJ majors learned that recruits won’t need to be pepper sprayed to end up on the force if they become certified in Bangor. Some academies require trainees to get sprayed so that they know what it’s like to be on the other end of the commonly used weapon.
Whether or not these up-and-coming members of law enforcement end up on the painful end of pepper spray one day, they are all tough cookies.
