Training
All recruit training is based at the State Police Academy. With new recruits, the training serves as a 25 week program with over 90 different courses available for instruction. Days often begin at 5:30 a.m. for physical training and ends with academic courses by 8 p.m. Recruits are offered personal and study time until lights out at 9:30 p.m. All classes (except for certain specialized classes, such as driver training and water safety) are conducted at the State Police Academy compound. As the training program runs Monday to Friday, recruits are available to go home during the weekends and must return the following Monday for training.
Additionally, the State Police Academy serves active law enforcement officers by offering in-service training, firearms requalification for current State Police officers, and professional development courses for partners in the public safety community.
Curriculum
Our training curriculum covers areas such as:
- Criminal law
- Motor vehicle law
- Evidence identification
- Firearms
- Deescalation
- Protection of civil rights and privacy
- First Amendment rights
- Fair and impartial bias
- Self-defense tactics
- Defensive driving
- Patrol procedures
- Military drills
- Court procedures
- Ethics
- Diversity awareness
- Community policing
Facility
The State Police Academy is located in New Braintree, Massachusetts as a 780 acre compound consisting of over 20 buildings. These include classrooms, a dining facility, a firearms range, sleeping quarters, a physical plant, and a gymnasium. A small housing community, often called Circle Drive, is used for office space and realistic training exercises. Additionally, our training facility includes a certified confidence course.
In partnership with other agencies, the State Police Academy hosts staff and office space for agencies such as the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Environmental Police.