We had a great trip to Richland and the Tri-Cities area in Washington state, and we hope to come back to both places soon!
We completed a Basic FTO Class in Kennewick, WA this mid-June, 2025, with members of the Benton County Sherrif’s Office as well as the Lacy Police Department.
During the week, we were proud to attend Benton County’s annual awards ceremonies. Deputy Michael Clossey (FTO) and his partner were in the process of trying to serve an arrest warrant. As they approached the front door, the suspect fired a shot through the door. But, for the fact he and his partner were crouching down, the round that would have struck one or both in the head, missed. They decided to pull back and alerted Tri-City SWAT. The suspect was subsequently arrested without any injuries. For his actions, Deputy Clossey received the Deputy of the Year Award as unanimously voted by his peers. Great job, Deputy Clossey!
We were also treated to a visit of Benton County’s youngest “volunteers,” Nova and Zhaviah Jacobsen, both in uniform. Mom, Rebecca (mom), says the girls, 5 and 7, both are looking forward to the day when they join the force to help serve the community they live in. The girls got the chance to speak with some of the deputies and officers during their break. The girl’s visit was a great time with many hugs and smiles.
Our class was well received by the attendees. Here are a few of the evaluation comments:
- “Well worth the 4-hour commute to attend this class.”
- “I have not been to many trainings during the past few years, but I will say this course and instructor was by far the best training I have been to in years.”
- “Dave is a very engaging instructor and has an obvious passion for the subject matter.”
- “I felt the material was presented and explained in a way that made it easy to digest and apply to my new role as an FTO.”
- “I came into this class with no knowledge on being an FTO, and leaving confident and ready for a student officer. I recommend this course to any and all future FTOs.”
- “Awesome class! I am excited to put this training into action.”
We graduated the class Tri-Cities class on Friday, June 13, and on Monday, June 23, we were in West Richland, WA with a 2-day Refresher class. The West Richland group was very engaging and looking to formalize their training program. Several of the attendees stated that the SJM, when presented as intended, is an easy and thorough program for new hires. We provided the FTO supervisor with several copies of completed FTO manuals as they work through the process of revamping their FTO program.
In July, we are heading back to the North Delta Training Academy in Louisiana for another Basic 40-hour FTO Class. Then in September, we have a Basic Class scheduled, followed by our 2-Day Refresher Class, and immediately following, our 1-day FTO Management Class. For a list of upcoming classes, click here.
While there are seats still available, we encourage anyone interested to secure soon, as the classes fill up fast!
As always, if you are in need of any of our FTO courses, send us an e-mail and we can discuss your options. We take recommendations all the time for new locations, and if you want to host a class, we would like to discuss options with you. You can visit our contact page to fill out a request, call us at 425-426-6350, or email us at ftoschool@gmail.com.
