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CELINA - A host of community members and law enforcement personnel, including one of Gov. Mike DeWine's cabinet members, were on hand Wednesday night as 18 cadets comprising the 2026 Wright State University-Lake Campus Police Academy were awarded certificates of completion.
After seven grueling months of physical training, hands-on experiences, being blasted by a taser and doused with pepper spray, and rigorous coursework, the now graduates possess a nearly 780-hour certificate - about 40 hours above the state minimum requirement - and a year's worth of college credit applicable toward an associate or bachelor's degree.
They're also poised for state certification exams and then placement with a law enforcement agency.
The Wright State University-Lake Campus Police Academy graduating class of eighteen cadets.
Not only was this one of the largest classes in several years, it's flat-out one of the best, said academy commander Mark Ernst.
"This is one of the best classes to ever go through this program," Ernst proudly declared. "I've had a lot of good classes before - and I've had a few classes that have given me heartburn. They have worked really hard, they have trained really hard and they have given their best to this program."
Without a doubt, the highest honor a cadet can receive is a positive comment from one of their 35 esteemed instructors, Ernst said.
Indeed, the evening was chockfull of superlatives for the 18 men and women: Gavin Ahlers, Luke Borns, Gabrelle Dulebohn, Colten Groff, Connor Hawkins, Seth Heindel, MaKayla Jackson, Jacob Kessler, Jamel Kessler, Colton Pohlman, David Richardson, Gabin Rieger, Camden Rothe, Amber Stangel, Adam Staugler, Cole Turner, Cayden Wilson and Peter Wyatt.
"This is not every class," pointed out instructor Pat Green. "The communities around us are very lucky to get this class on the streets. Departments are eager to get you guys, and I just want to thank you guys for the hard work and dedication that you guys put in. You guys came such a long way from when I first seen you guys in December."
David Richardson is one of the graduates already spoken for. He addressed the audience before introducing Coldwater Police Chief Kevin Wynk as instructor of the year.
"I want to give a special thanks to the City of Celina and Celina's police department for sponsoring myself and two other cadets through the academy, along with the other agencies that supported and sponsored cadets through this process," Richardson said. "I also want to recognize our families who support us for long hours and late nights. That support does not go unnoticed."
Ernst drew attention to the extraordinary achievements of the class of 2026.
"More than anything else in the academy, when we see cadets fail, it's usually the physical fitness test," he said. "This class, not only did everybody pass, but they did it together, and they did it on their first attempt. They only get two tries at it and if they fail twice, they're out. It is very rare (to all pass on first attempt). In my twenty-some academies it's only happened twice before."
The audience was hailed for being one of the biggest to ever assemble in James F. Dicke Hall for a police academy graduation ceremony.
"That says a lot about the family and the friends of these cadets that they do really care for them," Ernst said.
Ohio Department of Public Safety director Andy Wilson addresses the eighteen graduates and their families at the Wright State University-Lake Campus Police Academy graduation on Wednesday evening.
More than that, their very presence demonstrates the influence they exerted on the young men and women in pursuing a career in law enforcement, said Ohio Department of Public Safety director Andy Wilson.
"The fact that they are willing to choose this career of service is a direct reflection of the role that you have had in their life. You make it OK for them to serve," he said. "The truth is there's just not … enough people out there who empower their kids to choose this profession."
Wilson also heaped praised on the graduates themselves for the coursework they completed, the grit they exhibited and the honorable profession of law enforcement they they've chosen.
"We need you to protect our families, our friends and our communities, and we're so lucky to have young men and women who have chosen this profession, who have chosen a job where you are willing to put your well-being aside for the good of all of us in this room," he said.
Wilson, who was tapped by DeWine in 2022 to assist the Pike County Prosecutor's Office in prosecuting four individuals accused of murdering eight members of the Rhoden, Manley, and Gilley families in 2016, implored the graduates to truly earn the honor of the badge.
"Honor never, ever comes from title or position. It doesn't. True honor is earned every day down in the trenches, doing the hard, gritty courageous work," he said. "True honor, it requires you to move forward when every bone in your body is telling you to run the other way. … True honor is earned when you are willing without hesitation, without pausing, to go down a dark alley looking for somebody who wants to kill you. And when you find that person, you subdue him and you bandage his wounds."
