Sixteen youth from the Surrey School District have returned from Chilliwack after a tough week of training in law enforcement.
The 17th annual RCMP Youth Academy took place April 3 to 11.
The Grade 11 and 12 students were put to the test as they got to experience a sample of what a career in law enforcement is all about.
They saw mock demonstrations of domestic violence, break-and-enters, traffic violations, arrests, searches and even court cases.
About 80 per cent of the students going through the program end up pursuing a career in law enforcement.
One example is current Surrey RCMP Const. Derek Bonner.
Bonner participated in the Youth Academy when he was in Grade 12 in 2004 and is now a troop mentor at this year’s Academy.
“I’ve been involved in this program ever since I graduated from Depot and came to Surrey in 2008,” said 24-year-old Bonner, now with the Surrey RCMP’s Youth Section. “The Academy is as close to real-time policing as these students are going to see.”
Surrey students at the academy this year included: Reanne Brown, Sarah Chila, Carolyn Cizmok, Finn Dawkins, Katerine Dirner, Cody Fenske, Anton Gorkounov, Jasdeep Heer, Charles Mackenzie, Dylan McDonald, Zach Miller, Anmoal Rai, Travis Singh and Corbin Vanderspek