CAPE GIRARDEAU  – Southeast Missouri State University’s Law Enforcement Academy will begin offering weekend classes in Kennett, beginning in August.

Dr. Mike Brown, director of the Law Enforcement Academy, says the need is great for law enforcement training in Southeast Missouri.

“We are looking forward to meeting the training needs of area law enforcement agencies in that region,” he said.

Classes will begin Aug. 17 at Southeast Missouri State University’s Kennett Campus, 1230 First Street, and will be held on Friday evenings from 6-10 p.m. and all day on Saturday and Sundays.

Students completing the 720-hour program will graduate in May 2013 with a Class A Missouri Peace Officer’s License issued by the Missouri Department of Public Safety, Brown said.

“We have so many people in the area who want to go to the Law Enforcement Academy” but do not enroll because of the distance between Kennett and Cape Girardeau, where most Law Enforcement Academy classes are held, said Barry Tate, Kennett chief of police. “This is a great opportunity to stay right here.”

Tate says participants will not have to travel, find a place to stay or “spend money they don’t have.”

Academy staff and adjunct instructors are all experienced peace officers drawn primarily from southeast Missouri who will teach the classes, Brown said.

Tuition to enroll in the Academy will include instruction, books, ammunition, uniforms and testing, he said.

The Academy is a Missouri Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) approved provider and has provided basic and specialized training for more than 2,500 law enforcement officers since the Academy was established in 1987. The Academy offices are located at 122 S. Ellis in Cape Girardeau.

Informational meetings about the new Law Enforcement Academy classes in Kennett are planned for 2 and 6 p.m. April 11 at Southeast’s Kennett Campus. aaFor more information on Law Enforcement Academy classes in Kennett, call the Academy at (573) 290-5110.