Grant Provides Advanced Training for PCSO Command Staff

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From Paulding County Sheriff’s Office

Georgia’s Sheriffs realize and recognize the importance of maintaining high levels of training for all of their staff. Quality training is just one important element to the operation of an effective Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriffs of Georgia realize this and have made a commitment to finding ways to maintain a high level of readiness when a critical incident arises.

Budget constraints are often a barrier for Sheriffs to provide advanced training; however, that barrier has been removed since the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety partnered with the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association to provide advanced and specialized training for Deputy Sheriffs as well as a forum for discussion and information exchange between Sheriffs and their command staff.

A Governor’s Office of Highway Safety grant provided a crucial educational opportunity at the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association 2015 Command Staff Training Conference. Three days of intensive training were conducted in Chatham County, April 27-29, 2015 for the upper-level command staff of Sheriff’s Offices from throughout the state. Over 200 Sheriffs, Chief Deputies, and top-level command officers participated in the training conference. Paulding County Sheriff’s Office Colonel Jim Walker and Lieutenant Colonel Chad Hunton attended and received valuable training and information emphasizing highway safety and leadership.

“Serving in upper level supervisory positions in the Sheriff’s Office offers daily challenges. Continuous training is essential for leadership development to ensure our leaders are prepared. The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety has provided this tremendous opportunity for leadership training specifically for the Office of Sheriff, in addition to providing specialized training on highway safety and fostering partnerships statewide,” stated Tonia Welch, Training Director of the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association.

“Our Sheriffs across Georgia are dedicated to professionalism through training. It is with this in mind that the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety joins the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association with funding for this ongoing training for command staff. Well trained professionals like these are an asset to their communities and to our state,” said Harris Blackwood, Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety.

The Georgia Sheriffs’ Association, Inc. is a professional organization that represents Georgia’s 159 elected Sheriffs. The Association relies on the support of more than 70,000 Honorary Members throughout the state who recognize and value the services provided by the Constitutional Office of Sheriff. In addition to the valuable services that the Association offers to statewide law enforcement initiatives, GSA also sponsors the Georgia Sheriffs’ Youth Homes, Inc. which provides full-time residential care for Georgia’s abused, abandoned, and neglected children.