SPRINGFIELD — Carlos Santiago has family in law enforcement, so naturally he wanted to follow that path.
“This is a good first step,” he said.
Nate Jurkowski graduated from high school a few years ago without a real idea about what to do beyond going to college. While taking a year off from school to sort things out, a friend suggested he become a cop.
“From a young age, I always enjoyed the thought of policing, (but) it was one of those things I never thought I would be able to do,” he said.
Both Santiago, 20, and Jurkowski, 22, are now cadets in the Springfield Police Department.
Both have their sights set on becoming Springfield police officers, and each sees their involvement in the cadet program as giving them a leg up on the competition for limited space inside a future class at the Springfield Police Academy.
Cadets’ duties include a lot of clerical functions and assorted grunt work. But it is considered a great way to introduce people to what the job is about.
“This is a great job to network and see where you want to end up in a law enforcement career,” Santiago said.
“You can probably talk to half the officers here and they were either a cadet or their best friend at the academy was a cadet,” Jurkowski said.
That list includes the department’s acting commissioner, Cheryl C. Clapprood. She started as a cadet in 1979, and credits the program with showing her what police work was all about and encouraging her to pursue it as a career.
“It was a great insight into what’s done at the Springfield Police Department because I had no idea,” she said.
“You got to see who is who and the behind-workings of the police department,” she said. “And then I really knew it was something I wanted to do. It’s a good program to see if (a police career) is something for you or not.”
The department will conduct its cadet entrance exam June 29. The deadline to register is June 15.
The program is open to people who are between 17½ and 23 years old and citizens of Springfield and the U.S. Each applicant must be a high school graduate, about to graduate or have a high school equivalency certificate, and have a valid driver’s license.
Applicants must pass a physical fitness exam equal to what is required for a Massachusetts police officer. Also applicants must enroll in a college program and earn either an associate or a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice before completion of the cadet program.
In addition to school, cadets work 37½ hours a week at the police station, where they earn $12.24 per hour and get paid vacations and sick days.
There are currently 16 cadets, and the department accepts up to 24.
Clapprood said the program is not for everyone. Some people sign up as cadets but over time find police work is not right for them.
“I’d rather lose them as cadets than lose them after you invest an academy in them,” she said.
Santiago and Jurkowski each has completed an associate degree at Holyoke Community College, and each is now working toward a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice at Westfield State University.
Santiago has been a cadet for about 18 months, while Jurkowski’s two-year anniversary is in August. Each is looking forward to serving three years, and for one simple reason. Cadets who serve three years, and who pass the state Civil Service exam for police officers, move to the top of the list when it comes time to hire new officers.
Acceptance in the police academy is based on passing the Civil Service test. But when arranging the list, the city gives preference to Springfield residents, then veterans, said department spokesman Ryan Walsh. “Cadets have to be from Springfield, so a Springfield cadet basically jumps to the top of the list and is basically guaranteed a spot in the academy,” he said.
Santiago and Jurkowski said they each took the Civil Service test in March and anticipate having done well. But being guaranteed a spot for completing three years as a cadet, they said, is a powerful incentive.
“That’s why it’s good for younger kids 18 or 19 years old," Jurkowski said. “By the time you’re 21 or 22, as long as you have the test passed, you’ll have the three years in and you’ll be in.”
Cadets assist with fingerprinting and processing arrest warrants, restraining orders and towing orders. Jurkowski and Santiago each work in the records department.
“We do a lot of paperwork, and we also do a lot of stuff to help the officers on the street. We do warrant checks, we enter missing persons, enter stolen vehicles, stolen articles such as laptops, phones, and all that,” Santiago said.
“It’s not just getting coffees and paperwork,” Jurkowski said.
Cadets sometimes go to the scenes of shootings and car accidents to assist with photos and evidence collection, he said.
“I mean you’re right there with the officers at the scene taking photos and documenting evidence,” he said. “So it’s more than just simple paperwork.”
Santiago said another advantage of being a cadet is getting to know — and getting known by — the department’s supervisory officers.
“We encounter a lot of gold badges, a lot of higher ranks,” he said. “We’re really respectful to them and they are respectful toward us. If they ever needed anything that we can assist with, we always offer to help.”
Clapprood said that when she was a cadet 40 years ago, she could not fathom that one day she would be in charge of the department. Still, she said, “I may be prejudiced but I still think the ex-cadets make the best cops.”
For more information on the cadet program, or on how to apply, go to the department’s website.