OFFICIALS DEDICATE FIRST-OF-ITS KIND POLICE, FIRE HIGH SCHOOL
With BC-CNS-Police-Fire High-Box
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By STEPHANIE SANCHEZ
Cronkite News Service
PHOENIX (Thursday, Oct. 18) _ Sara Lopez realized she wanted to become a police detective as she watched the television drama “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”
“There are a lot of problems on the streets, such as gangs and drugs,” Lopez said in Spanish. “This is something that I want to do to help out the community.”
She now has a chance to pursue that dream at Franklin Police and Fire High School, touted as a first-of-its kind institution at its dedication Thursday.
The school, which opened Oct. 1, gives 160 juniors and seniors from around the Phoenix Union High School District the opportunity to learn the basic skills of police work and firefighting.
Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said the school responds to the needs of police and fire departments around the Valley.
“The rigors of this school will both be academic and professional,” Gordon said.
For now, students travel by bus for two hours of instruction each day. Next year, the school will offer all core courses as well as police and firefighter education to freshmen through seniors.
To create the high school, the district renovated a former elementary school built in 1926.
Adam Moreno, who travels from Cesar Chavez High School, said he wants follow through on his father’s unrealized dream of becoming a firefighter.
“It’s something that I always wanted to do since I was 8 years old,” Moreno said. “And my parents are really supportive.”
Laura Franco, from Carl Hayden High School, wants to become a police officer because the job seems “very adventurous.”
“I would always admire at how officers are patrolling the streets,” Franco said, mixing English with Spanish. “And it would always seem that they are on an adventure every day.”
Alecia Taylor, from North High School, said she got hooked on the idea of becoming a policewoman when her cousin, who is an undercover officer, told her how much fun it is.
“This is going to help a lot of kids to stay out of trouble,” Taylor said.
The campus features forensic labs, a 911 dispatch classroom and a community room for officers and firefighters.
Former police and fire officials teach the courses, and students have the opportunity to get hands-on training in investigation, evidence-collection and crime lab work.
Christine Ybarra, the school’s principal, said graduates have benefits that will get them promoted upon entering any police or fire department. They’ll also have 13 college credits.
Stephanie Ferrera, a senior at Metro Tech High School, said she plans to become an undercover officer busting drug traffickers.
“It’s a really good school,” Ferrera said in Spanish. “Any public safety job may be dangerous, but as long as it helps the community …”
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CAPTION WITH BC-CNS-POLICE-FIRE HIGH: Students line up Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007, at Franklin Police and Fire High School, which prepares students for careers in firefighting and law enforcement. Officials from the city and the Phoenix Union High School District dedicated the school Thursday, calling it the first of its kind in the nation. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Stephanie Sanchez)