State Hospital Peace Officer

The Law Enforcement certificate program is designed to prepare those interested in a career with the Office of Protective Services.

Provide students with the skills neededto enter and complete a field training program with a law enforcement agencyand become certified by OPS (Office of Protective Services).

Objectives: 

•     Meetthe Commission on Office of Protective Services (OPS) academic requirements

•     Meetthe minimum physical fitness requirements.

•     MeetOPS discipline/drill and skills requirements 

The Law Enforcement Training program currently offers three law enforcement academies, perishable skills training and advanced officer courses. The Law Enforcement Academy (LE 320) is a full-time POST certified intensive program that trains pre-service recruits for local police and sheriff’s departments for first line law enforcement duties.  The CORE academy (LE 330) is a full time STC certified program training pre-service recruits for custody operations in local jails.   The State Hospital Police Academy is a full-time residential law enforcement program training student for a career in law enforcement duties for the five California state hospitals.  This program is regulated by the Office of Protective Services and is a “live-in” academy located at Camp San Luis Obispo. 

14 Advanced officer training courses ranging from one day to a series of week-long courses are offered each semester to train both local officers and officers from across California. This training helps the officers to maintain the required continuing professional education mandated by the state. The program also contracts with law enforcement agencies to cosponsor training locally. The Allan Hancock College Basic Law Enforcement Academy is a full-time program that trains pre-service recruits who are either independent recruits putting themselves through the academy or sponsored recruits pre-employed by a law enforcement agency.

The academy is a 15-week (570 hours)intensive course that is a college course with strict para-military discipline.Recruits attending the academy are academically and physically challenged and face complex problem solving in a highly stressful, disciplined, and structured environment. Recruits receive rigorous and challenging training in all phases of law enforcement.

The academy is an Office of Protective Services (OPS) certified course that covers all 64 OPS required topics called "lecture domains." These domains include approximately two-thirds classroom instruction as well as one-third skills training such as firearms live fire at a shooting range and arrest and control skills in the mat room. The 64 lecture domains are taught by OPS and POST certified instructors using mandated OPS curriculum that includes OPS written exams,lesson plans, expanded course outlines, text books, skills test protocols, etc.

Recruits who complete the course begin the"Field Training Officer" program as a probationary State Hospital officer within any of the five state hospitals in California. The average annual number of recruits graduating the program is in excess of 100 per year.