Georgia Public Safety Training Center

WELCOME: Welcome to the Georgia Public Safety Training Center, a comprehensive training complex for use by all state and local public safety related units of government within the state of Georgia.
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QUICK LINKS: Agency Questionnaire; Calendar; Agency Access; Student Access; Become a Police Officer; Become a Firefighter; Board of Public Safety; Governor's Public Safety Awards; Public Safety Memorial; Retired Officer Training; FAQs

Course Related Information	News and Events
Sovereign Citizen Investigations Sovereign Citizen extremists continue to pose problems for law enforcement in Georgia, and officers must be well versed in the characteristics and types of criminal activity associated with the movement. This 6-hour training course, presented by instructors from the FBI’s Atlanta Division, will teach the history, development and political beliefs of the sovereign citizen movement; fraudulent identification documents often carried and presented by sovereign citizens; and the methods of operation sovereign citizens use to commit fraud & other criminal activity. Most importantly, this course will cover officer safety and dealing with sovereign citizens at traffic stops. No test is required. Register for this course today! Forensic Statement Analysis Can you tell when a person is truthful or deceptive? GPSTC can help! We are offering a FORENSIC STATEMENT ANALYSIS training course to law enforcement officers. Instructor Mike Rundles is a nationally recognized expert on forensic statement analysis and will show students how to analyze written statements to identify missing or sensitive information. This one-day minimizes time spent away from the office and will teach officers and supervisors useful techniques for detecting truthful or deceptive statements. Sign up for this class today! Lost Dorm Keys Effective August 1, 2012, the cost for a lost dorm key has increased and is now $25.00. Missing or Damaged Items Effective August 1, 2012, damages to dorm rooms by students or missing items discovered upon a student's checkout from the dorms, will be billed to the agency which the student is employed. Traffic Accident Reconstructionist Certification Testing Effective July 1, 2012, POST approved the Traffic Accident Reconstruction Specialist Certification. Upon meeting the requirements, an Officer will become eligible for testing. Testing for the certification will begin in September. Drug Rape Investigations Registration is currently availabe for Drug Rape Investigations training August 9 - 10, 2012. Click here for more information. Supervision I, II, and III In addition to offering Supervision I, II and III at GPSTC, Forsyth, we are also offering Supervision at the Regional Academies. Check our calendar for updates: Courses in calendar First Responder Course - POST Intermediate Certification Course Based on recognized first responder guidelines, this course provides training in the skills needed to provide the first patient contact in the emergency medical services system. Fire fighters, police officers and other emergency services personnel are often the first on the scene of emergency calls and have a responsibility to know what to do. The course is now known as Emergency Medical Responder. Lodging now available for all eligible students Lodging is now available free of charge for eligible students regardless of the agency distance from the Training Center. The previous restriction of a 60 mile limit has been eliminated to better serve our customers. Tuition fee for all students that repeat a class due to failure At the Board of Public Safety Meeting on February 10, 2011, the Board approved charging a tuition fee for all students that repeat a class due to failure. This change went into effect on July 1, 2011. New Recreation Hours The weight room is now available from 5:00 pm until 9:30 pm Monday-Thursday. Any recreational items (i.e. weight belts, gloves) must be supplied by the student.	Georgia Honors Fallen Public Safety Officers at Annual Georgia Public Safety Memorial Ceremony Forsyth, GA — Governor Nathan Deal gave the keynote address at the Georgia Public Safety Memorial Ceremony at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) in Forsyth. Twelve men and women who died while on duty as public safety officers were honored for their bravery and dedication during the ceremony. Their names were added to the Georgia Public Safety Memorial Wall, located in the Memorial Plaza Courtyard at GPSTC. Click here for the press release. GPSTC Athens Hosts Inaugural Run to Remember in Honor of SPO Buddy Christian ATHENS, GA - On the second anniversary of his murder, the Georgia Public Safety Training Center's (GPSTC) Athens Regional Academy today held its inaugural Northeast Georgia Run to Remember in honor of Senior Police Officer Elmer Basco “Buddy” Christian, III, an Athens-Clarke County police officer, who was killed in the line of duty on March 22, 2011 while responding to an incident involving the shooting of another officer. Click here for the press release. GPSTC Fire Academy hosts 11th Annual Georgia Firefighter Weekend Firefighters from 143 fire departments across the state gathered at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) in Forsyth over the weekend for the 11th Annual Georgia State Firefighter Weekend, hosted by the Georgia Fire Academy (GFA). More than 300 firefighters, many of of whom were volunteer firefighters, attended the event, which was provided to help dedicated fire service personnel better prepare themselves and their communities to prevent and fight fire. Click here for the press release. GPSTC Leaders Take Part in Georgia-to-Georgia Exchange The Georgia Public Safety Training Center’s (GPSTC) Executive Director Tim Bearden and Interim Deputy Director of Training Keith Howard recently returned from a week-long trip to the Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, where they met with officials from that country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) Police Academy to share ideas and insight on developing police departments and law enforcement training academies. Click here for the press release. GPSTC and GSP Conduct Crash Test for Training Purposes The Georgia Public Safety Training Center’s Traffic Section (GPSTC), in collaboration with the Georgia State Patrol’s (GSP) Specialized Crash Reconstruction Team (SCRT) and Motor Carrier Compliance Division (MCCD), conducted a two-vehicle crash test today at GPSTC’s driver training complex, making GPSTC one of the first public safety training centers in the nation to conduct its own crash tests. Click here for the press release. Deal recognizes Georgians for acts of heroism in public safety The annual Governor’s Public Safety Awards program began in 1998 to recognize public safety officers who go above and beyond the call of duty to protect citizens and make significant contributions to the public safety profession at large. Click here for more Scholarships Available for Georgia Fire Service Personnel The Scott "COD" Millsap Memorial Scholarship is available for Georgia fire service personnel seeking to attend the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in 2013. The awarded scholarships will cover the registration fee to attend the conference. Click here for information on the scholarship.

Course Related Information

News and Events

Sovereign Citizen Investigations
Sovereign Citizen extremists continue to pose problems for law enforcement in Georgia, and officers must be well versed in the characteristics and types of criminal activity associated with the movement. This 6-hour training course, presented by instructors from the FBI’s Atlanta Division, will teach the history, development and political beliefs of the sovereign citizen movement; fraudulent identification documents often carried and presented by sovereign citizens; and the methods of operation sovereign citizens use to commit fraud & other criminal activity. Most importantly, this course will cover officer safety and dealing with sovereign citizens at traffic stops. No test is required. Register for this course today!

Forensic Statement Analysis
Can you tell when a person is truthful or deceptive? GPSTC can help! We are offering a FORENSIC STATEMENT ANALYSIS training course to law enforcement officers. Instructor Mike Rundles is a nationally recognized expert on forensic statement analysis and will show students how to analyze written statements to identify missing or sensitive information. This one-day minimizes time spent away from the office and will teach officers and supervisors useful techniques for detecting truthful or deceptive statements. Sign up for this class today!

Lost Dorm Keys
Effective August 1, 2012, the cost for a lost dorm key has increased and is now $25.00.

Missing or Damaged Items
Effective August 1, 2012, damages to dorm rooms by students or missing items discovered upon a student's checkout from the dorms, will be billed to the agency which the student is employed.

Traffic Accident Reconstructionist Certification Testing
Effective July 1, 2012, POST approved the Traffic Accident Reconstruction Specialist Certification. Upon meeting the requirements, an Officer will become eligible for testing. Testing for the certification will begin in September.

Drug Rape Investigations
Registration is currently availabe for Drug Rape Investigations training August 9 - 10, 2012. Click here for more information.

Supervision I, II, and III
In addition to offering Supervision I, II and III at GPSTC, Forsyth, we are also offering Supervision at the Regional Academies. Check our calendar for updates:
Courses in calendar

First Responder Course - POST Intermediate Certification Course
Based on recognized first responder guidelines, this course provides training in the skills needed to provide the first patient contact in the emergency medical services system. Fire fighters, police officers and other emergency services personnel are often the first on the scene of emergency calls and have a responsibility to know what to do. The course is now known as Emergency Medical Responder.

Lodging now available for all eligible students
Lodging is now available free of charge for eligible students regardless of the agency distance from the Training Center. The previous restriction of a 60 mile limit has been eliminated to better serve our customers.

Tuition fee for all students that repeat a class due to failure At the Board of Public Safety Meeting on February 10, 2011, the Board approved charging a tuition fee for all students that repeat a class due to failure. This change went into effect on July 1, 2011.

New Recreation Hours
The weight room is now available from 5:00 pm until 9:30 pm Monday-Thursday. Any recreational items (i.e. weight belts, gloves) must be supplied by the student.

Georgia Honors Fallen Public Safety Officers at Annual Georgia Public Safety Memorial Ceremony
Forsyth, GA — Governor Nathan Deal gave the keynote address at the Georgia Public Safety Memorial Ceremony at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) in Forsyth. Twelve men and women who died while on duty as public safety officers were honored for their bravery and dedication during the ceremony. Their names were added to the Georgia Public Safety Memorial Wall, located in the Memorial Plaza Courtyard at GPSTC. Click here for the press release.

GPSTC Athens Hosts Inaugural Run to Remember in Honor of SPO Buddy Christian
ATHENS, GA - On the second anniversary of his murder, the Georgia Public Safety Training Center's (GPSTC) Athens Regional Academy today held its inaugural Northeast Georgia Run to Remember in honor of Senior Police Officer Elmer Basco “Buddy” Christian, III, an Athens-Clarke County police officer, who was killed in the line of duty on March 22, 2011 while responding to an incident involving the shooting of another officer. Click here for the press release.

GPSTC Fire Academy hosts 11th Annual Georgia Firefighter Weekend
Firefighters from 143 fire departments across the state gathered at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) in Forsyth over the weekend for the 11th Annual Georgia State Firefighter Weekend, hosted by the Georgia Fire Academy (GFA). More than 300 firefighters, many of of whom were volunteer firefighters, attended the event, which was provided to help dedicated fire service personnel better prepare themselves and their communities to prevent and fight fire. Click here for the press release.

GPSTC Leaders Take Part in Georgia-to-Georgia Exchange
The Georgia Public Safety Training Center’s (GPSTC) Executive Director Tim Bearden and Interim Deputy Director of Training Keith Howard recently returned from a week-long trip to the Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, where they met with officials from that country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) Police Academy to share ideas and insight on developing police departments and law enforcement training academies. Click here for the press release.

GPSTC and GSP Conduct Crash Test for Training Purposes
The Georgia Public Safety Training Center’s Traffic Section (GPSTC), in collaboration with the Georgia State Patrol’s (GSP) Specialized Crash Reconstruction Team (SCRT) and Motor Carrier Compliance Division (MCCD), conducted a two-vehicle crash test today at GPSTC’s driver training complex, making GPSTC one of the first public safety training centers in the nation to conduct its own crash tests. Click here for the press release.

Deal recognizes Georgians for acts of heroism in public safety
The annual Governor’s Public Safety Awards program began in 1998 to recognize public safety officers who go above and beyond the call of duty to protect citizens and make significant contributions to the public safety profession at large. Click here for more

Scholarships Available for Georgia Fire Service Personnel
The Scott "COD" Millsap Memorial Scholarship is available for Georgia fire service personnel seeking to attend the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in 2013. The awarded scholarships will cover the registration fee to attend the conference.
Click here for information on the scholarship.