Last Updated on July 21, 2026 6:06 pm
BOONE, N.C. — Fourteen Appalachian State University students are among the inaugural graduates of the new University of North Carolina System Police Academy, and beginning this fall they'll serve the Boone campus community as sworn officers with the Appalachian Police Department.
Sixteen recruits in total — including the 14 App State students — successfully completed North Carolina Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) this summer, becoming the first graduating class of the UNC System Police Academy. The recruits were honored during a graduation ceremony held in June at Samarcand Training Academy in Jackson Springs.
“The graduates exemplified outstanding commitment, perseverance and professionalism throughout this demanding training,” said App State Director of Public Safety and Chief of Police Johnny Brown. “I am incredibly proud of the dedication each student demonstrated — not only to our program, but to the profession of law enforcement and the communities they will serve.”
The App State students completed the academy through the university's Appalachian Police Officer Development Program (APDP), a two-year program open to all full-time App State students regardless of major. After graduating from the academy, the new officers will work part time with the Appalachian Police Department as sworn officers until they finish their degrees, gaining hands-on law enforcement experience along the way.
Academy class leader and App State junior Siena Healy, a criminal justice major from Calabash, delivered remarks at the graduation ceremony, calling the six-month academy an “excellent and unique experience that offers amazing training experiences and bonding opportunities.”
“Take the opportunity and go for it!” Healy said of her advice for students considering App State's APDP program. “You'll be working alongside students with similar career goals, as well as meeting officers with a wide range of backgrounds willing to mentor and teach.”
The new UNC System Police Academy, conducted in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Public Safety's Samarcand Training Academy and Sandhills Community College, centralizes training that was previously carried out at various locations across the state — for App State, that meant training on the Boone campus through the former Appalachian Police Academy. The centralized approach brings BLET instructors from all 17 UNC System schools to a single location, tailoring the curriculum to the public safety needs of university campuses.
The academy also navigated North Carolina's 2025 revision of BLET requirements, which increased mandatory training by more than 200 hours — from 640 to 868 hours. The expanded 20-week curriculum spans 39 subject matter blocks, including firearms training, driver training, constitutional law, first aid and communication skills.
Top-performing recruits recognized at the ceremony included Amy Escobar (Academic Award), Mark Moore (Top Driver Award), Cody Holt (Top Gun Award), Samuel Hoskins (Physical Fitness Award), and Jonathan Hess and Christopher Officer (Most Improved Physical Fitness Award).
The 14 App State graduates are: Ella Arndt of Greensboro, a junior criminal justice-international studies major; Gianna De La Cruz of Winston-Salem, a senior political science major; Amy Escobar of Holly Ridge, a senior chemistry major; Siena Healy of Calabash, a junior criminal justice major; Jacob Hess of Hendersonville, Tennessee, a junior criminal justice major; Jonathan Hess of Zebulon, a junior criminal justice major; Samuel Hoskins of Sophia, a junior criminal justice major; Cody Holt of Jacksonville, a senior kinesiology major; Angelina Margaria of Newport, a senior criminal justice major; Jack Martin '26 of Wilmington, who graduated in May with a bachelor's degree in professional studies; Mark Moore of High Point, a junior criminal justice major; Christopher Officer of Fayetteville, a junior criminal justice-international studies major; Adison Singleton of Goldsboro, a senior criminal justice major; and Cadence Wittman of Taylorsville, a junior criminal justice major.
📷 Photo Courtesy of Appalachian State University / Photo by Lawrence Smith
