Training - What We Are Doing
Penn State police officer currently receive ongoing mandatory and specialized training throughout their careers as mentioned here. We will always remain committed to enhancing and improving our training efforts.
Some of those ongoing efforts include:
PowerDMS Training
All police officers, security, and other staff, including lead administrators within the department, are enrolled in the Power DMS system (and previously in PoliceOne Academy), which allows for mandatory monthly online trainings on a wide array of subjects.
Initially, prioritized training consists of accreditation and high-risk training topics, such as:
- Use of Force
- Officer Wellness
- Emergency Management
- Supervision
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
- Mental Health
- Comunity Policing
- Criminal Investigations
- Compliance
- CPR/First Aid
- Traffic and Vehicle
- Trauma Informed Investigations and Interviewing
University Police and Public Safety will continue these mandatory training assignments for all police officers, security, and other staff, including lead administrators within the department.
Use of Force
All aggregate training data will be available and published for the year 2022 by March 2023 and released annually.
In 2021, police officers and Police Security Specialists (PSS) completed training in 11 different areas for a total of 21,628 hours. In 2022, training was completed in 12 different areas for a total of 12,458.2 hours.
Note, the "Lead Team" is a group of high-level managers withing University Police and Public Safety. Civilian staff are non-sworn members of the department.
| Topic | Training Hours per Assignee | Total Training Hours Completed |
|---|---|---|
| Firearms | 19 hours per police officer/PSS1 | 2,798 hours |
| Taser/BWC | 4 hours per police officer | 544 hours |
| OC/Pepper Spray | 4 hours per police officer/PSS1 | 627 hours |
| Chemical Weapons | 1 hour per police officer | 155 hours |
| Defensive Tactics | 7.5 hours per police officer/PSS1 | 1,129 hours |
| Expandable Baton | 4 hours per police officer/PSS1 | 572 hours |
| ALERRT | 17.5 hours per police officer/PSS1 | 2,765 hours |
| Supervisory Trainings | Varies per supervisor - police officer/PSS1 | 3,739 hours |
| Policy Review | Varies per police officer/PSS1 | 823 hours |
| Total Training: | 13,152 hours |
| Topic | Training Hours per Assignee | Total Training Hours Completed |
|---|---|---|
| Firearms | 16 hours per police officer/PSS | 2,634 hours |
| Taser | 5 hours per police officer/PSS | 947 hours |
| OC/Pepper Spray | 3 hours per police officer/PSS | 714 hours |
| Chemical Weapons | 1 hour per police officer | 136 hours |
| Defensive Tactics | 7 hours per police officer/PSS | 663 hours |
| Expandable Baton | 7 hours per police officer/PSS | 643 hours |
| PoliceOne Topics | 23 hours per police officer/PSS | 3,772 hours |
| Policy Review | 6 hours per police officer/PSS | 972 hours |
| Total Training: | 10,481 hours |
| Topic | Training Hours per Assignee | Total Training Hours Completed |
|---|---|---|
| Firearms | 4 hours per police officer/APSO | 1,376 hours |
| Taser | 5 hours per officer | 805 hours |
| OC/Pepper Spray | 3 hours per police officer/APSO | 516 hours |
| Chemical Weapons | 1 hour per police officer | 161 hours |
| Defensive Tactics | 7 hours per police officer/APSO | 1,204 hours |
| Expandable Baton | 7 hours per police officer/APSO | 1,204 hours |
| Specialized Impact Munitions | 1 hour per police officer | 161 hours |
| PoliceOne Topics | 5.5 hours per police officer/APSO | 961 hours |
| Policy Review | 6 hours per police officer/APSO | 1,032 hours |
| Officer Requested Course | 8 hours | |
| Training | Assigned |
|---|---|
| Responding to People with Mental Illness | All UPPS Members |
| Cutural Awareness and Diversity Overview | All UPPS Members |
| Implicit Bias | All UPPS Members |
| Understanding and Responding to Excited Delirium Calls | Sworn Officers, APSO, Dispatch |
| Anti-Bias Training for Law Enforcement | Sworn Officers, APSO, Dispatch |
| Crowd Control: Demonstrator Tactics | Sworn Officers |
| De-Escalation and Minimizing Use of Force | Sworn Officers |
| Verbal De-Escalation Skills | Sworn Officers |
| Use of Force | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Dispatch |
| Arrest, Search & Seizure (Fourth Amendment) | Sworn Officers and Lead Team |
| Report Writing from a Lawyer's Perspective | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Dispatch and Security Officers |
| Hate Crimes Training for Law Enforcement | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Dispatch and Security Officers |
| Shaping an Ethical Workplace Culture | All groups |
| Interview and Interrogation Techniques | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team and Security Officers |
| Investigative Skills 2 | Sworn Officers |
| Vehicle Safety | Sworn Officers |
| Recognizing the Indicators of Sovereign Citizens | Sworn Officers, Lead Team, APSO, Security Officers |
| Sovereign Citizen Movement-CBS Hit Piece | Sworn Officers, Lead Team, APSO, Security Officers |
| Sovereign Citizens and Law Enforcement | Sworn Officers, Lead Team, APSO, Security Officers |
| The Importance of Communication in Law Enforcement | Sworn Officers, APSO, Security Officers, and Dispatch |
| Crisis Management | All personnel |
| Use of Less Lethal Force | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, and Security Officers |
| Liability Issues in Use of Force | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, and Security Officers |
| The Misuse of Miranda Rights | Sworn Officers and Lead Team |
| Fitness & Nutrition 1 | All personnel |
| Community Policing | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Security Officers, and Dispatch |
| Generational Differences | All personnel |
| Communication Skills 1 | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Dispatch, Non-Sworn Officers, Security Officers |
| Dealing with Stress | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team, Dispatch, Non-Sworn Officers, Security Officers |
| Evidence Collection, Control, and Storage | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team |
| The Right to Photograph and Record in Public | Sworn Officers, APSO, Lead Team |
For Emergencies, Call 911