Lynn Police Officer Ryan McDermott, left, Cadet Noah Corbishley, center, and Officer Mark Lee at graduation last week. Item Photo by Bridget Turcotte
By Bridget Turcotte
LYNN — The Lynn Summer Police Academy graduated its tenth class last week.
“Most of their peers spent the last six weeks at the beach, at the pool, sleeping until noon,” said Officer Mark Lee. “Not this group. These are 47 of the most committed students in the city of Lynn.”
The free academy is broken up into classroom time and hands-on activities with lectures by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lynn Police Department. It’s intended to offer teenagers interested in law enforcement a real-life policing experience.
More than 90 teens, age 13 to 18, applied this year and 60 were chosen to participate, though several dropped out.
The academy is paid for by the city and organized by Student Resource Officers Bob Hogan, Ryan McDermott and Lee.
In the past six weeks, the students, or cadets, learned about Lynn’s domestic violence unit, gang unit, drug task force and identification unit. The crime scene reconstruction unit created a mockup of a scene and challenged the participants to act as detectives and solve the crime.
The cadets went on field trips and learned from agencies that don’t typically offer such services, McDermott said. A trip to the State House, Gillette Stadium, both Lynn courthouses, Middleton House of Corrections, and a ride on a State Police boat were just a few of the group’s adventures.
Graduate Jaydin DeArco has completed the academy two years in a row. He said it’s not a summer program teens should join just to have something to do.
“This academy serves a far greater purpose than that,” DeArco said. “It taught us our three core values that are on the back of our shirts: community, leadership and integrity. Those values must be firmly established and instilled in every cadet graduating this academy.”
At Thursday’s ceremony, awards were given to the program’s top performers. Cadet Jacquelyn Ramirez performed “God Bless America” on the violin after securing the Outstanding Cadet Award. Each teen went home with a certificate for completing the program and certification in CPR and First Aid.
“Six weeks ago we entered this beautiful building as strangers,” Lee said. “Today we leave with a bond that can’t be broken.”
Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy concurred.
“I see the physical difference in all of you,” Kennedy said. “The first day, you were looking around, fidgeting, you didn’t really know what to do with yourselves. The discipline and order that has been instilled in you is noticeable. Clearly you have all paid attention to the lessons of the academy.”
Schools Superintendent Dr. Catherine Latham praised the police department for going above and beyond the call of the job.
“Their job is to protect and serve but they do far more than that,” Latham said. “This is one program they do to make this community better.”
Graduates include: Joenel Aguero, Joel Aguero, Madison Atton, Yassine Bakhouch, Edwin Ramos Cader, Josue Caceres, Nelisha Carrion, Ismail Casso, Livingston Chalas, Raymond Castor, Aratris Chaviano, Liliana Cruz, Noah Corbishley, Sarah Deoliveira, Tyler Coukos, Andrew Doane, Jaydin DeArco, Jasmin Gonzalez, Manyuri DeLeon, Kassandra Gonzalez, Jonathan Ellis, Phat Hoang, Jose Garcia, Jonathan Kim, Darlin Guzman, Luz Linares, Bryan Landaverde, Walter Martinez, Juna Mont Louis, Kyle McCusker, Daniil Malaev, Brian Melara, Regner Nival, Devin Nguyen, Natalie Noesi, Tomi Oladunjoye, Chidi Ojiaku, Ike Oranekwu, Jacquelyn Ramirez, Joselyn Perez, Luis Rivera, Aramis Sanchez, Jefferey Robles, Martin Taveras, Daniel Sanchez, Carl Thompson, Alexandra Vasquez, and Julio Lugo.
Recipient of Most Outstanding Cadet Award Jacquelyn Ramirez performed “God Bless America” on the violin pic.twitter.com/NljbNkdExE
— Bridget Turcotte (@BridgetTurcotte) August 18, 2016
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte.