23 new officers graduate from Chattanooga Police Academy

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Darnell Bryant is a new Chattanooga Police Officer.

“I feel accomplished. I did it with the help of my classmates, you know, it’s one of those stepping stones in life that you’ll be proud of for the rest of your life,” Bryant said.

“i just feel honored. Honored to be his sister honored to be a part of his journey”

Bryant was born and raised in Chattanooga and has always enjoyed giving back to his community.

Something he does through volunteering and mentoring, but only recently did he decide to be come a police officer.

“I wanted to speak with people. I wanted to be immersed in the community, you know, I wanted to be a role model. I wanted to be a leader, and being a police officer is all of those things in one,” Bryant said.

Bryant is one of 23 people that graduated.

A group of mostly men with some minorities.

“Our goal is for our police department to be a direct reflection on the community that we serve. We’re not there yet. We’re steady striving to get those numbers up,” Chattanooga Assistant Police Chief Glenn Scruggs said.

Assistant Police Chief Scruggs said some of their approach to recruiting new officers is hands on by reaching out to high schools, colleges, and job fairs.

But recruitment in general, he says, can be difficult.

“It’s a pretty competitive job market overall. I mean the unemployment numbers are down that means everyone is out there scrambling for employees, and we’re no different.”

He encourages anyone interested in becoming an officer to contact the police department, http://www.chattanooga.gov/police-department/employmentrecruitment