INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana State Police (ISP) force is trying to fill the gaps in a shortage of troopers. WRTV caught up with ISP to see how an effort to recruit current officers could open opportunities and fill positions.
"I like to think of it as a pendulum. I think it's swinging back our way. I think we are seeing higher recruiting numbers than we have in years past, so it is a positive swing," 1st Sgt. Katie Salzman with ISP said.
Salzman believes this swing will give ISP a much-needed boost to address a shortage of troopers.
"We are allotted about 1,280 give or take, but we're sitting right now at 1,134, so we're about 120,150 shy right now, unfortunately. We also usually average about 50 retirements a year, so you know we do anticipate. Short for troopers for a while." Salzman said.
Through various recruiting efforts, Salzman said ISP's “Lateral Recruit Academy” has been a hit with law enforcement officers interested in switching agencies.
"We've done a few laterals here and there that we combined with our traditional academies in the last couple of years and had some success," Salzman said.
Salzman said the academy is now nine weeks, which is a bit more appealing than the nearly 26-week academy officers previously had to go through.
Lateral recruits start at $66,000 a year as a trainee, then $70,000 a year as a probationary trooper.
This is significantly less than IMPD, another agency working to recruit current law enforcement officers. IMPD lateral hires start at more than $85,000 a year.
"Almost three years ago, we had a great pay raise, and that made us competitive. Unfortunately, we are falling a little behind again, but it is still a very competitive salary," Salzman said.
Salzman said recruitment is an agency-wide effort to see what's working and what's not across all departments. She said finding a pathway to recruit more minorities would be another plus.
"Trying to be more intentional about putting our minority troopers out there and making them more visible. So, you know, having a female do the interview today versus one of my male counterparts is something that we're trying to be very intentional about," Salzman said.
ISP also offers ride-along opportunities for anyone who wants to learn more about what it takes to be a trooper. You can learn more on the agency's website..
