Warwick Police officers Al Melucci and Melisa Pinheiro stood smiling – and at attention – as East Providence Police Lt. David Pacheco led a military-like parade march Aug. 28 at Camp Varnum in Narragansett.

The two Warwick PD officers – as well as other police personnel from various parts in the state – had plenty of reason to be proud as 23 uniformed young men and women graduated from the annual week-long Rhode Island Law Enforcement Academy.

The Warwick Explorers Post 327 motto “Our best today for a better tomorrow” tied in nicely with the recent Academy held at the seaside facility of the Rhode Island National Guard.

For a week each summer, young people ages 14-20 who have indicated they’d like to pursue a career in law enforcement, participate in the law enforcement academy that features everything from physical training to classroom student and event FBI instruction.

“We started off with 23 Explorers and today we will be graduating 23 Explorers,” Charlestown PD Lt. Patrick McMahon, who serves as director of the Law Enforcement Academy, told an audience of parents, friends and families who took in the graduation. “This program runs on a 24-hour basis for seven days and I’d like to publicly acknowledge and thank the RI National Guard for allowing us to utilize their facility. It’s certainly a view like none other.”

McMahon also explained that each day of the Training Academy started with Lt. Pacheco waking the Explorers up at 5 a.m. for a long list of activities ranging from attending classes to discussing such topics as use of force, defensive tactics, crime scene investigations, criminal law and procedure as well as learning about finger printing and hearing an FBI officer speak about several investigations that led to the arrest of known terrorists.

The Explorers also learned how the bomb robot worked while others tried on the bomb suit technicians wear. The week also featured lessons about mounted command units.

“While we tried out best to make sure each of them enjoy their week here with the Academy staff, we also tried to build and instill on each Explorer team work, commitment, respect, dedication, compassion and safety,” McMahon went on. “While discipline was certainly instilled, there was times when they also had just a small amount of fun – like at the beach, a bonfire by the waterfront that featured how to make banana s’mores.”

Thus, Melucci and Pinheiro, who attended the academy, had reason to be proud of Post 327 Explorers Cadets Evan Anderson and Brendan Thornton for their outstanding performance during the week-long academy.

“This was a great experience,” Melucci, who coordinates the WPD’s Explorer Post 327 program, offered. “This is all part of our community policing and we certainly welcome any youngsters ages 14-20 to join our ranks.”

The WPD Explorer Program includes weekly classroom training, ride-alongs, and other hands-on experiences. The intent, as Melucci explained, “is to develop and deliver an engaging program implanting academic, character and leadership skills from which to guide students in achieving their full potential.”

Students in that age bracket who aspire to become a law enforcement officer should call Melucci at (401) 468-4311.