There are some different types of commercials popping up lately in the holes between television shows.
Along with the suave, polished actors pushing teeth-whitening toothpaste and the 50-plus gentlemen swearing to the effectiveness of Viagra, there are police officers encouraging youths to stay out of trouble and off drugs. These youths, like the smiling, uniformed faces before them, might one day become proud members of the Lansing Police Department.
These commercials are just one facet of an LPD campaign targeted toward middle and high schoolers who, the department hopes, may one day aspire to become officers.
The campaign, which includes television and newspaper ads, posters and an informative CD-ROM, arose from the LPD's anticipation that it will need to fill an irregularly large number of officer positions beginning in 2009, said spokesman Lt. Bruce Ferguson.
"We looked at our seniority roster and about the time the eighth and ninth graders are getting through school, we're going to have openings around here," he said. "What we want to do is plant the seed in these young folks' mind that the law enforcement career is very rewarding.
"Every day you come to work you have the opportunity to make your community a better place."
In addition to advertisements, Ferguson said recruiters will make monthly visits to Lansing high schools in order to demonstrate to teens that officers aren't as intimidating as they might think.
"The more the kids get to see that officers are human and get to talk with them, the more they'll see where they are coming from," he said. "We want to recruit local kids. We want our police force to resemble the community we serve."
The LPD recently had to freeze eight positions because of lack of funds. Ferguson said the jobs will be restored as the economy improves, but that their absence will not affect the citizens of Lansing.
He added that the LPD is not currently looking for officers, as two positions recently were filled, but that there is a need for 911 dispatchers.
Capt. Juli Liebler of the East Lansing Police Department said similar recruiting techniques are not needed for her department.
"Over the last couple of years, we've lost a few positions due to budget cuts, but we're not anticipating a huge influx of people leaving," she said.
Liebler added that past efforts at recruiting teens had not been as successful as the department had hoped.
"We tried it before, but we've found more luck with college kids," she said. "They seem to be a bit more mature and know what they want."
In addition to hiring graduates of police academies offered by institutions such as Lansing Community College, both the LPD and ELPD hire cadets who have the chance to work with police to get a feel for the job before they decide to pursue law enforcement as a career.
