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Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne Co.— Lt. Gov. Austin Davis today highlighted more than $2 million in grants to police officers across the state to help recruit.
“In Pennsylvania, we have more than 2,500 municipalities and more than 1,200 legal agencies. This has resulted in intense competition for talent and a large number of job openings throughout the commonwealth,” Davis said.
The $2 million grant will help fill 400 open law enforcement positions across the state.
Five counties in our region received six of these grants.
In Luzerne County, Wilkes University police received $14,000. The chief said with the money, members of their security team can obtain police certifications.
“There were a lot of security applications, and we asked them, why did they choose Wilkes University, why do they want to be a security officer? They said, hopefully one day we can get Act 120 and become police officers,” said Superintendent Michael Krzywicki.
Krzywicki said they currently have 12 officers and four security personnel, but are looking to add more security measures.
Security guards receive some training but primarily do not have arrest powers.
He said understaffing is a problem across the commonwealth and the grant provides an opportunity for those who wish to receive it to become officers.
“The hope is to attract people who are interested in becoming police officers, but they probably can’t afford the police academy because it’s very expensive,” Krzywicz said. “So this is an opportunity for us to apply for a grant but use it. It’s about attracting people to come here and become police officers.”
The state is still accepting grant applications from interested law enforcement agencies
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