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.
 

2022 Training Data
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

 

2021 Training Data
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

 

2020 Training Data
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

 

PoliceOne Academy Training Assignments
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