Delaware Tech to offer new correctional officer training

Delaware Tech and the Delaware Department of Correction have collaborated to develop a new certificate program designed to benefit individuals applying for positions as correctional officers. Completion of the Correctional Officer Potential New Hire program will provide priority employment consideration for the DOC applicant, as well as critical professional development and credits that can be applied toward a Delaware Tech criminal justice associate degree.

The certificate program consists of five core courses and one college-required course, a total of 16 credits, plus any needed prerequisite classes. The program focuses on:

• Areas of professionalism in the performance of duties
• Function and interaction of criminal justice agencies and organizations
• Interviewing, counseling, and crisis intervention and prevention techniques with diverse criminal justice populations
• Causation and correction to juvenile and adult offenders
• Legal principles and practices of criminal and constitutional law.

The credits earned upon completion of the certificate program, combined with an additional 13 credits that can be earned for completing the DOC's Correctional Employee Initial Training, will put interested individuals more than halfway toward their associate degree.

"We are pleased to have been able to work with the Department of Correction to develop a program that not only helps bolster the correctional officer applicant pool, but also significantly jump-starts individuals toward obtaining a college degree," said Nicole Shuler-Geer, department chair of the Terry Campus criminal justice/homeland security program and the college's lead on the certificate program. "Delaware Tech prides itself on responding to ongoing workforce training and education needs, and this collaboration is a great example of a successful partnership. We are now working together to create a professional development program to benefit individuals already working within the Department of Correction."

"The correctional officer certificate program will enable the DOC to recruit the best candidates in the region and strengthen its incoming workforce," said Department of Correction Commissioner Perry Phelps. "We are excited about the opportunity to partner with Delaware Tech and look forward to the creation of new programs in the future."

The Correctional Officer Potential New Hire certificate program is offered at all Delaware Tech campus locations, including an accelerated format option on the Dover campus. For more information on the certificate program, contact Nicole Shuler-Geer at 302-857-1742 or nshuler@dtcc.edu.