RICHMOND – On Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, the Commonwealth will graduate its 140th generation of Virginia State Troopers. The 52 new troopers will be presented their diplomas during commencement exercises at 10 a.m. at the State Police Training Academy located at 7700 Midlothian Turnpike in North Chesterfield County. The Honorable Glenn Youngkin, Governor of Virginia, will speak at the graduation ceremony.
This is the first graduating class to consist of both traditional trainees and members of what is known as the “Expedited Law Enforcement Certified Academy.” Members of the Expedited Academy are existing law enforcement professionals who have already been certified by the Department of Criminal Justice Services and have served at least three years in law enforcement elsewhere in Virginia.
The new troopers have received more than 1,300 hours of classroom and field instruction in more than 100 different subjects, including de-escalation techniques, strategies to assist people in mental health crisis, ethics and leadership, fair and impartial policing, constitutional law, emergency medical trauma care, and public and community relations. The Trooper-Trainees of the 140th Basic Session began their 28 weeks of academic, physical and practical training at the Academy July 26, 2023. Those Trooper-Trainees participating in the Expedited Academy began their training December 28, 2023.
The soon-to-be graduates of the 140th Basic Session are from every corner of the Commonwealth, as well as Missouri, Connecticut, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky, and the countries of Haiti and Jamaica.
Upon graduation, the new troopers will report to their individual duty assignments across Virginia. For their final phase of training, each trooper will spend an additional six weeks paired up with a Field Training Officer learning his or her new patrol area.
