Colton Police CART Graduates 19 Recruits

The Colton Police Department recently graduated 19 recruits from the Colton At Risk Teens (CART) Academy. The night consisted of a graduation ceremony, a highlight video throughout their journey, guest speakers, and a presentation and recognition of outstanding awards. The CART Class of 2015, whose slogan is “Came with Attitude, Left with Gratitude”, was filled with recruits from five school districts within five cities, including the areas of Colton, Grand Terrace, San Bernardino, and Ontario. They ranged from taggers, fighters, first-time offenders, bullies, and truants. According to Colton Police Officer and Coordinator of the CART program Rich Randolph, this is the first graduating class of CART in five years. “It was a good turnout…about 150 people in attendance,” he added. Approximately five years ago the CART Academy was shut down due to staffing issues, Randolph said. Colton Police Chief Mark Owens and the newly-elected council were instrumental in the program’s revival. The CART Academy officially started back up in September of 2015. It consisted of 16 weeks of intense training, said Randolph. It is “designed to redirect negative behavior of teenagers, mentoring them as young adults and providing an additional resource to parents and families.” Benjamin Rebs, 17-year-old from Grand Terrace, served as Class Sergeant/Class President and was presented with the Outstanding Academic Performance Award, according to Randolph. “We’re going to miss these kids but we were really excited to graduate them,” he shared. Many community members and proud family members attended the ceremony as well as local leaders including Dan Flores, Vice President of Colton Joint Unified School District (CJUSD); Grand Terrace’s Mayor Pro Tem Sylvia Robles; Colton’s Mayor Pro Tem Frank Navarro; San Bernardino City Unified School District’s Superintendent Dr. Dale Marsden; as well as the guest speaker of the ceremony San Bernardino County District Attorney Deputy Chief Simon Umscheid. The next program is scheduled to start this February. The CART Academy is free.