Kauai Police Junior Academy seeks student applicants by Friday deadline

Kauai teenagers who want a closer look at police work have only until Friday, May 1, to apply for the Kauai Police Department’s Junior Police Academy, a five-day summer program that is meant to do more than introduce students to a badge and a uniform. The 2026 class will run June 1 through June 5 and is open to students in grades 9 through 12.

The academy puts students through hands-on public-safety training that reaches well beyond a classroom lecture. KPD says participants will work through crime scene investigations, forensic science, firearms safety, first aid, physical fitness and active-shooter response training. Additional program details include defensive tactics, stop-the-bleed and tourniquet application, and basic criminal law, underscoring the academy’s emphasis on emergency response and practical decision-making under pressure.

Deputy Chief Mark Ozaki said the program is also meant to build skills that matter far beyond a police career. “Beyond learning about public safety, participants will also cultivate life skills in areas like leadership, communication, and teamwork,” Ozaki said. “Our goal is to inspire and empower the next generation of leaders...” For Kauai, where retaining local talent has long been a challenge, that message carries weight. KPD’s Support Services Bureau says recruitment and retention of sworn officers remain a high priority, and the department’s fiscal year 2024 annual report says keeping pace with retirement and other attrition factors remains a challenge.

The academy’s revival adds to that workforce push. County materials say the Junior Police Academy had not been offered since 2019 before returning in 2025 after a six-year hiatus, and selected applicants were to be notified after a review process. The Kauai Police Commission later recognized the relaunch as one of three community initiatives honored in its Sept. 26, 2025 minutes, alongside the K-PAL Flag Football Program and the fourth annual Touch-A-Truck event.

For families, teachers and counselors across the island, the deadline makes this a last call for one of the few youth programs that connects classroom-age students with the daily work of officers, dispatchers and professional staff. In a county where public safety, staffing and local career paths are tightly linked, the academy is being used as an early pipeline for the next generation of leaders, and the window to apply closes Friday.