A couple of Salina Police Officers are among 26 new law enforcement officers who graduated from the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center late last week.

According to the Academy, officer Atticus Patterson of the Salina Police Department was awarded the Welch Academic Award, and Officer Trisha Huelsmann of the Garden Plain Police Department was honored with KLETC’s Fitness Award. Officer Cutter Brazle from the Winfield Police Department was also recognized during the ceremony for his firearms proficiency as the class’ “Top Shot.”

Deputy Justin Hawks of the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office was the graduating class president. The speaker for the ceremony was Bill Carr, sheriff for Ford County. Rob McClarty, KLETC senior instructor of police, was the class coordinator for the 283rd Basic Training Class.

Graduates receive certificates of course completion from KLETC and Kansas law enforcement certification from the Kansas Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training, the state’s law enforcement licensing authority. The training course fulfills the state requirement for law enforcement training. Classroom lectures and hands-on applications help train officers to solve the increasingly complex problems they face in the line of duty.

Established by the Kansas Legislature in 1968, KLETC trains the majority of municipal, county and state law enforcement officers in Kansas and oversees the training of the remaining officers at seven authorized and certified academy programs operated by local law enforcement agencies and the Kansas Highway Patrol.

About 300 officers enroll annually in KLETC 14-week basic training programs. KLETC offers continuing education and specialized training to more than 10,000 Kansas officers each year. KLETC is located one mile west and one mile south of Yoder, near Hutchinson, and is a division of the University of Kansas Lifelong & Professional Education. The graduates, who began their training in June 2021, represented 22 municipal, county and state law enforcement agencies from across Kansas. Graduates are listed below by county and agency:

Barton

Nicholas Reed, Great Bend Police Department

Cherokee

Aaron Cockerel, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office

Cowley

Cutter Brazle, Winfield Police Department

Crawford

Alexandria Tippie, Pittsburg Police Department

Dickinson

Justin Hawks, Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office

Jimmy Wallace, Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office

Douglas

Kaden Hammer, University of Kansas Police Department

Blair Whaley, University of Kansas Police Department

Ellis

Collin Rose, Hays Police Department

Ellsworth

Sean Hanson, Ellsworth County Sheriff’s Office

Ford

Luis Marquez, Ford County Sheriff’s Office

Franklin

Madison Garner, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office

Grant Reinking, Ottawa Police Department

Gove

Darien Dilka, Gove County Sheriff’s Office

Harvey

Tyson Ridenour, Newton Police Department

Jackson

Erik Heape, Prairie Band Pottawatomi Tribal Police

Labette

Ashlynn Anderson, Parsons Police Department

Leavenworth

Courtney Hobbs, Leavenworth Police Department

Linn

Allison Fox, La Cygne Police Department

Logan

Cory Sager, Oakley Police Department

Miami

Christopher Perkins, Osawatomie Police Department

Riley

Stephen Zapata, Riley County Police Department

Saline

Izaiah Grogan, Salina Police Department

Atticus Patterson, Salina Police Department

Sedgwick

Trisha Huelsmann, Garden Plain Police Department

Wyandotte

Corey Thomas, Bonner Springs Police Department

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Salina Police Department Photo – Officers Izaiah Grogan and Atticus Patterson