The Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board and Western Illinois University are pleased to announce that the U.S. Office of Justice Programs has awarded funding to establish a Police Corps Program in Illinois. They will house the Police Corps Program at Western Illinois University. The funding was awarded through the Office of the Police Corps and Law Enforcement Education. The Police Corps is designed to increase the number of community police with advanced education and training and put them on the streets of communities where they are most needed.
Funds cover tuition, fees, books, supplies, transportation, and room and board.
It will be required that all participants complete twenty-four weeks of Police Corps Academy training. Individuals completing their degrees and the academy training, will be certified as police offers in the State of Illinois and assigned to community patrol in communities selected by the Training Board. Students who attend a community college are eligible after they transfer to a four-year program. They do not require that participants major in criminal justice programs. Police agencies interested in receiving Police Corps graduates must apply to the Illinois Police Corps office.