MARIETTA—Washington State College of Ohio (WSCO) announced that 13 corrections officers from area agencies recently completed the Ohio Corrections Officer Basic Training Academy. The course, certified by the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission, included 148 hours of training in seven subject areas required for certification to be employed as a Corrections Officer in an Ohio facility.
Topics covered included Administration, Legal Issues, Jail Security, Human Relations, Medical Overview, Subject Control Techniques, and First Aid. The course is required under Ohio Revised Code for jail staff recently employed in Ohio.
The officers who completed the training represented correctional facilities from:
- Gallia County Sheriff: Traci Chapman, Joshua Cummings, and DaKota McCoy
- Middleport Police Department: Cody Brooks, Rebecca Carson, and Tara Spaun
- Monroe County Sheriff: Adam Blackstone and Kyle Sisson
- Noble County Sheriff: Justice Klusty and Tabitha Schafer
- Washington County Sherriff: Matthew Borman, Kaleigh Hinton, and David Oliver
Enrollment in the academy is restricted to employees of an Ohio local correctional facility. The successful completion of this academy makes these graduates eligible to take the Ohio certification test.
In addition to the Corrections Academy, WSCO also offers the Peace Officer Basic Academy (POBA), the required training for anyone interested in employment as a law enforcement professional in Ohio. The college is currently accepting applications for the academy that will begin on August 14.
The 2023-2024 academy will run in the evenings Monday through Friday with some weekends and will span the fall and spring semesters. The first point of entry to become a cadet in the program is passing the state-mandated physical training test. The endurance assessment includes 1 minute of sit-ups, one minute of push-ups, and a mile-and-a-half run. For testing and program enrollment details, contact POBA Commander Joe Browning at jbrowning1@wscc.edu or call 740-885-5645.
Shown in the photo are (front row, left to right)—Cody Brooks, Rebecca Carson, Tara Spaun, DaKota McCoy, and WSCO POBA Commander and Director of Public Safety Joseph Browning. Second row, left to right: Tabitha Schafer, Kaleigh Hinton, David Oliver, and Kyle Sisson. Back row, left to right: Matthew Borman, Joshua Cummings, Traci Chapman, Justice Klusty, and Adam Blackstone.
