Why must PTC Cops have College?

Ga.Cop67's picture

I know a cop who has worked with the County S.O. for two years and now he is with Fayetteville P.D. and he doesn't have a college degree. He Does a great job and he is the Depts. only bilingual officer. I have talked to his superiors and they have said he is a great asset to the dept. He was turned down by PTC PD just because he did not have a College degree. I think PTC PD lost a good man there. Being a good cop takes common sense and street smarts, book smarts do not always work. I think that policy should be reviewed because there are alot of men and women who would make great cops here even without a piece of paper saying they went to college.

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Accreditation may be why
Ga Conservative's picture
Submitted by Ga Conservative on Fri, 03/23/2007 - 1:39pm.

I am not a cop and can't speak to the PCPD's policy. However, it seems that having a college degree is helpful in being a police officer just as it is in many other fields. Namely, you have the ability to learn and retain information quickly as well as critical thinking skills.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that if you don't have a degree you will not possess those attributes or any other qualities that go into the making of a good cop. However, with a degree in hand one should be able to make a reasonable assumption that a candidate for a job would have those skills.

Even though I am not a cop, I do have friends and relatives who are officers. One of them does not have a degree. He has been awarded with Officer of the Month and Quarter on a few occasions, yet he is passed over continually for promotion because of his lack of a degree. His boss told him that the more officers at the department that have degrees, the better it is for the accreditation procedure.

That being said, the PCPD is one of the most professional departments around. While that may be due to the educational standards in place, it is more likely a result the Chief, Major and Captains and their hiring practices.

While we are speaking about the police, I want to put this out there. The way that the City Council has been treating their employees with their pay and benefits is a disgrace. There is enough money in the City's accounts to pay the employees at or above market. Just keep in mind that every time you see a patrol car or an officer, these people have families to support and they know that a career in law enforcement is not the ticket to easy street. They should, however, be able to expect to receive enough pay for their families.

I do like the idea of having a reporter shadow an officer for a few days or a week. I think that many people in PTC will be in for an eye-opener when they realize the amount of crime in the town. Plus, by showing a professional and even handed response the PCPD may be able to garner some more support.

The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money.


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'Coz Chief Murray said so!
Basmati's picture
Submitted by Basmati on Fri, 03/23/2007 - 12:48pm.

You pose a very good question, Ga.Cop67. I asked this question myself a few weeks back, and after much hand-wringing, the best answers anyone could come up with are "But we've always done it this way!" and "Peachtree City has college educated people living here..they expect college educated police officers".

Personally, I'd prefer a police officer with experience and common sense.

Thinking further about this, this might be an excellent story idea for the Peachtree Citizen. Have one of their reporters shadow a PTC officer for an entire day, or week, and have him/her write about exactly what it is that a PTC officer does on a day-to-day basis. Maybe they ARE doing the sort of police work that requires a college degree. I'm willing to be convinced.

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Actually Chief Murray
Submitted by skyspy on Tue, 03/27/2007 - 8:16am.

If your goal is to emualate the people in PTC, then here are some additional characteristics you might look for:

1. Look for someone with an interest only mortgage, or a jumbo loan, so they can live in a home way beyond their means.

2. Look for someone with alot of credit card debt, even better if they have delared personal bankruptcy.

3. Look for someone who has no idea how to discipline or raise their kids. Add points if they don't own a leather belt or wooden spoon.(especially if they don't know what either one is used for)

4. Look for someone who can't accept responsibility for their actions. ie: when they get caught speeding, or DUI, it's always someone elses fault(the cops are out to get them) Added points for anyone who has at least 3 speeding tickets.

It shouldn't be that tough to find someone who fits in here. Shhheeessh, put some effort into it.

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One More Thing Chief Murray
Submitted by skyspy on Tue, 03/27/2007 - 9:54pm.

5) Look for someone who hates trees. That's all I need is to have one of your tree-hugger cops to put the whammy on me, everytime I look crosseyed at my sweetgum trees......

Seriously it can't be that hard to find a cop to fit in here.

6) Find someone who can't figure out birthcontrol...to the point that they have more kids than they can afford, or have time for.....come on these kind of people are a dime a dozen......just look at the city...

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Common Sense?
Submitted by tatzert on Mon, 03/26/2007 - 4:47pm.

I would also prefer an officer with common sense, but who says that a college educated officer doesn't have any? I have heard and participated in this argument several times. I don't believe that one is necessarily better than the other, but why do people think that the uneducated guy has common sense. In most law enforcement agencies, the pay difference between an officer with a high school diploma and an officer with a college degree is on the average of around $6k a year, sometimes more. Common sense tells me that if I want more money, I need a degree.
Let's face it, it takes money to live in Fayette County. That being said, I grew up in PTC, graduated from McIntosh. I love the place, but I can't afford to live there. I now live in Fairburn with my wife and I wish we could afford to move back to PTC. I graduate from Georgia State in August of this year with a degree in Criminal Justice. I plan on joining a local PD. I applaud PCPD for having this informal policy, but they won't attract good graduates with the salary they offer. Since I lack common sense, I will be seeking a job with other agencies in the metro area who pay much more than PCPD.

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Void
Submitted by dollaradayandfound on Mon, 03/26/2007 - 6:40pm.

Void

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tatzert: police pay
Submitted by dollaradayandfound on Mon, 03/26/2007 - 6:28pm.

I have never understood why every single policeman on the PTC force needs a college degree. Some do need one in order to eventually have the background for supervision and training purposes, just as does the military.
The army doesn't need ten million soldiers, all college graduates and officers, now do they?
I think this is the problem we have: wanting all degreed people for a job that doesn't require such. Good training and supervision can make them fit to talk to PTC citizens who are alluded to as well ecucated and insulted by high school and academy trained cops!
What a bunch of crap.

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I agree with you brother!!!
Ga.Cop67's picture
Submitted by Ga.Cop67 on Mon, 03/26/2007 - 9:44pm.

I guess PTCPD is a bunch of chiefs and not enough indians...and curently, the few indiand they do have are leaving and joining other tribes. I know for a fact that some are leaving to be treated better and some are even taking a small paycut.I`m verry happy and satisfied in my current Dept. I think PTCPD better get their heads screwed on straight and listen or the Sheriff Dept. may just have to take over the city's law enforcement job.


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