The Joliet Police Department routinely offers a 'Citizen's Police Academy' (CPA) that provides an excellent opportunity for citizens and community members to learn about law enforcement. The CPA allows participants to  interact with Joliet Police Officers, while gaining first hand experience as to how a typical police department operates.

The Joliet CPA is held for twelve weeks, are held weekly on Wednesday evenings from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. The sessions are a mixture of lectures and practical exercises, taught by qualified personnel from the Joliet Police Department and other law enforcement agencies. There are also opportunities for attendees to actively participate in some of the sessions under the direct supervision of the instructor(s). After the last session, there is a graduation ceremony where attendees receive a certificate of completion and a CPA t-shirt. Some of the topics covered during the twelve weeks include presentations of:

• An opportunity to talk with the Police Chief
• Tour the Joliet Police Department station
• Community Policing
• Crime Prevention
• Special Operations Squad (swat team)
• K-9 Unit
• Investigations
• Use of Force
• Gangs
• TASER training/demonstration
• State’s Attorney’s Office presentation

Any further inquiries about the department’s program can be directed to the program coordinator at 815-724-3250.