Oakland gets $900,000 from Kaiser, PG&E for police cadet program

OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee on Wednesday announced that the city has secured nearly $900,000 from Kaiser Permanente and PG&E to reinstate a police cadet program that was not funded in 2023 because of budget constraints.

$900K for 9 cadets 

What we know:

The money will support nine cadet positions over two years, which Lee said will help "rebuild a pipeline that reflects Oakland's values, keeping our neighborhoods safe is town business."

The mayor's office said the money will be spent on the cadet's pay, as well as training them, equipment and other "essentials" for their development. 

What is a police cadet?

A police cadet is a young person between 18 and 21 years old who wants to follow a police career path.  They should be enrolled in college, and they will work part-time, get paid, get experience and get early exposure to public service before entering the academy.

"We're bringing it back today because we know that investing early and investing locally leads to stronger outcomes for our city," Lee said, citing that last week, OPD graduated 14 new officers from the 195th Police Academy – the department's first class in a full year. 

The 196th Academy has already started and both are part of five budgeted academies included in the city's plan. Lee said Oakland has also launched a pre-adademy class at Merritt College to "better prepare candidates for success, because readiness truly matters."

According to the city, Oakland cadets graduate from the police academy at over 90%, compared to about 60% for non-cadet recruits.

"This is only but one strategy to begin to increase the numbers of our police force," Lee said. 

What they're saying:

Interim Police Chief James Beere put the news simply: "This is huge."

He said having more cadets will help "develop future officers and professional staff from our own community. This program invests early on in young people who are committed to public service. It provides them with education, mentorship, and real world experience."

Oakland police union wants more officers

The other side:

Lee's announcement came two days after the Oakland police union issued a statement about how understaffed they are: The union said there are 490 sworn officers in a "city that needs 877 officers."

"Right now, the city is short 387 sworn officers, placing the public and officers in harm’s way," the police union statement said, highlighting the MLK weekend violence in the city that included multiple homicides, a large sideshow and two threats made to Oakland police officers. 

In a new announcement sent moments after Lee's announcement, the Oakland Police Officers Association praised the cadet program, which the union has long supported. 

"We commend Mayor Lee and Acting Chief Beere for recognizing the value of the Police Cadet Program and for taking action to invest in the future of the Oakland Police Department," Huy Nguyen, president of the Oakland Police Officers Association, said in a statement. "The cadet program has proven benefits, and we are encouraged to see renewed commitment to growing the next generation of Oakland police officers."

However, the OPOA emphasized that while the cadet program is an important long-term strategy, it does not address the "severe and immediate staffing crisis" facing the Oakland Police Department. 

"The reality is stark and deeply concerning," Nguyen wrote. "We are in a crisis and there is, concerningly, no end in sight unless the Mayor and Council take action to retain the small force of dedicated officers we have and to draw new recruits now to Oakland through improved pay, benefits, and working conditions."

Twin brothers were cadets, now OPD officers

Twin brothers, Issaac and Isaiah Harris, were once cadets and have now been police officers for the last 10 and 11 years respectively. 

They knew they wanted to go into law enforcement when they were little boys, playing cops and robbers. 

When they attended Skyline High School, they met a school resource officer who told them about the police cadet program.

"The cadet program set us up perfectly," Harris said. "It helped us sharpen our multitasking skills, helped us become a leader."