Cadets undergo disabilities seminar

Thirty-one cadets of the Northern Marianas College 17th Police Academy underwent a four-hour crash course on the fundamentals of dealing with persons with disabilities, a public service seminar conducted by the Governor’s Developmental Disabilities Council last week.

DD Council Executive Director Tom Camacho, Program Officer Arlene Yamagata and staff facilitated the training for the 17th Police cycle, underscoring the need for cadets to acquire the necessary skills in dealing with the physically and mentally challenged.

This, the cadets have to learn before they progress as real field police officers, according to Ms. Yamagata.

The instructors also gave an overview of the role and responsibilities of the DD Council and the significance of the “people first language.”

Furthermore, video presentations on mental retardation and the Ten Commandments of Communicating with people with Disabilities were shown.

Participants also engaged in a sensitivity activity in which they experienced first-hand on how it is like to have disability.

“It’s important that they be able to identify persons with disabilities and communicate with them,” she added.

The NMC Police Academy and the Department of Public Safety solicited assistance from the DD Council in training the future police officers.

Ms. Yamagata reported that the concepts introduced to cadets during the seminar where very “new” to majority of the participants.

“The training was very well received by the cadets and there was a lot of enthusiasm. They also acknowledged the need to conduct even more trainings on the same topic,” said Ms. Yamagata.

The DD Council chair has expressed plans to conduct disabilities seminars at the Police Academy on an annual basis.

The seminar earned positive feedback from its participants with 86 percent (out of the 94 percent who responded to the evaluation) “strongly agreeing” that the trainers were well-prepared and knowledgeable on the topics.

Seventy-six percent of the participants strongly agreed that the presentation was well-organized. Sixty-nine percent of the participants rated the over all workshop as “excellent.”

In addition, 62 percent of the participants strongly agreed that as a result of the workshop, they have increased their general knowledge about disability-related issues. (MM)