The Douglas County Sheriff's Office is looking for its next deputy

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — The explorer program gives young adults the opportunity to explore possible career paths. At DCSO, kids get hands-on experience while learning how to overcome challenges on the job.

• Recent high school grad Matthew Harris joined the program last year and plans on coming back this fall with the hopes of one day becoming an officer.
• Law enforcement agencies across the country are struggling to recruit. Sheriff Hanson says this program is a value recruiting tool for them.
• There are a variety of explorer programs that give kids a chance to see possible careers.

BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:

The Douglas County Sheriff's Office is looking for its next deputy through Explorer Post #592 where kids are exploring what it takes to protect and serve.

It's a program for kids 14-20 where they practice things like handcuffing, pulling people over and building strength needed to stay sharp on the job.

Recent high school grad Matthew Harris joined the program last year and plans on coming back this fall with the hopes of one day becoming an officer.

"I believe it's a really rewarding career and there's a lot of upsides to it. Being able to be there for your community is definitely an interest for me and being able to help the people that you live with,” said Harris.

But he knows the challenges law enforcement faces.

"The issue I have seen is like the mental strain it can put on law enforcement officers and how it affects their day-to-day life, especially with the long shifts,” he said.

Work-life balance is one of the things the International Association of Chiefs of Police notes as being a reason agencies across the county struggle to recruit. Another reason is public perception.

"We are struggling to find quality qualified applicants for our industry and so it's so important because we're looking to recruit the best, but we're also looking to recruit diversity,” said Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson.

Sheriff Hanson says the explorer program is a valuable recruiting tool for them.

The department has deputies who started as explorers - like Tony Incontro.

"If they leave this program with the mindset of, yeah this is what I want to do this is really good, then we've succeeded as a program. If they leave this program and think, well maybe this isn't what I thought it was going to be, then we've also succeeded as a program because we've prevented that young adult from going down a path they may not want to go down,” said Incontro.

There are a variety of explorer programs that give kids a chance to see possible careers.

The one here at the Sheriff's Department takes the summer off. Explorer Post #592 runs from September through May with meetings on Thursday night.