Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Criminal Justice Training Center has received a retired police vehicle from the Jim Shorkey Auto Group and Ibis Emergency Vehicles for use in training students studying to become police officers.
From left, Greg Boss, government account manager from Jim Shorkey Auto Group; IUP Criminal Justice Training Center Director Marcia Cole; Sean Boyle, government account manager from Jim Shorkey Auto Group.
The donated vehicle will support the hands-on training of future law enforcement officers. The gift is part of IUP’s comprehensive fundraising campaign, Impact 150.
The Impact 150 campaign has a goal of $150 million; it is the largest campaign in the history of the university. The campaign is named in honor of the university’s sesquicentennial celebration, celebrated during the 2025–26 academic year.
Impact 150 centers around raising funds for healthy students, including supporting students academically and personally; a healthy university, including maintaining IUP’s commitment to excellence and innovation; and healthy communities, including IUP’s work to establish a college of osteopathic medicine.
As of March 31, IUP’s Impact 150 comprehensive fundraising campaign stands at more than $114.5 million, or 76.34 percent of goal, with 50,150 gifts from 13,138 donors. This total includes more than $54 million for IUP’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, part of IUP’s commitment to address the rural healthcare crisis. At the time of the public campaign launch of IUP 150 in August 2025, a total of $81,236,852—54 percent of the campaign goal—had been gifted to IUP from 11,673 donors.
The IUP Police Academy, part of the Criminal Justice Training Center, is certified by the Municipal Police Officers’ Education and Training Commission to provide Act 120 training designed to certify individuals as municipal police officers in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The IUP Criminal Justice Training Center celebrated 50 years of operation in 2025. During the past 50 years, the IUP Police Academy has trained more than 5,000 cadets. The center is part of IUP’s Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice in the College of Arts, Humanities, Media, and Public Affairs.
The donated vehicle will be used in various training exercises designed to help cadets develop essential law enforcement skills, including vehicle operations, traffic stop procedures, patrol techniques, and scenario-based instruction. Access to actual police equipment enhances the academy’s ability to provide realistic training environments for recruits pursuing careers in law enforcement.
“Supporting the communities we serve has always been a core value of Jim Shorkey Auto Group,” Jim Shorkey Auto Group Business Development Manager Sean Boyle said. “We are proud to partner with IUP’s Police Academy and contribute resources that help prepare the next generation of police officers. The donation reflects Jim Shorkey Auto Group’s ongoing commitment to education, community partnerships, and public safety initiatives throughout western Pennsylvania,” he said.
“We are very grateful to the Jim Shorkey Auto Group and Ibis Emergency Vehicles for this very generous donation,” IUP Police Academy and Criminal Justice Training Center Director Marcia Cole said. “We have very high standards for our program, our faculty, and our students, and this vehicle will help us continue our commitment to high-quality, hands-on training that will prepare our students for their work as police officers throughout the commonwealth,” she said.
In April 2024, Director Cole partnered with the Armstrong-Indiana Behavioral and Developmental Health Program to integrate Crisis Intervention Team Training into the cadet Act 120 training program. This CIT training will continue to be offered every April, free of charge, to all first responders of Indiana and Armstrong counties. More than 100 cadets have completed the CIT training.
Director Cole and the Criminal Justice Training Center were honored with a certificate of appreciation during the IUP-Indiana Regional Medical Center’s third annual Pennsylvania Mountains Rural Health Conference in November 2024 for her development and launch of the CIT training program.
The IUP Police Academy recently received its second Training Academy Accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. IUP has also been selected by Quest for the Best, a tax-exempt organization, as the recipient of scholarships for students who are studying to become municipal police officers.
Along with the Act 120 programs, IUP Police Academy offers several additional programs to meet the needs of police and first responders, including instructor training and training to meet the requirements of Act 180, Act 235 (Lethal Weapons Training), and Act 67 (School Security Personnel Training) in an online platform approved through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
Over the years, the IUP Criminal Justice Training Center has partnered with several colleges and universities in the area as satellite centers; currently, the Criminal Justice Training Center has an agreement with CNX Resources in Canonsburg to serve as the Pittsburgh region’s satellite site for the center’s Act 120 training.
IUP’s Police Academy began offering virtual reality training in 2025. Its facilities include an audio/video Enhanced Scenario Room, mat room, gym, and newly remodeled classrooms.
The faculty in IUP’s program includes practitioners from diverse backgrounds and experiences, including district court judges, former county district attorneys, current and former criminology faculty (often from police ranks), police chiefs, detectives, SWAT officers, and patrol officers. The center has three full-time employees and up to 65 part-time instructors.
The IUP Criminal Justice Training Center requires intense academic and practical training, and by using a values-based approach, it focuses on integrity, generosity, and moral courage. Act 120 training is offered on both a full- and part-time schedule; the full-time program can be completed in 22 weeks, and the part-time program can be completed in about 49 weeks.
The IUP Police Academy is a stand-alone program, allowing anyone who passes the required entrance criteria to attend the program and, upon successful graduation, apply for 15 college credits.
Since its founding in 1875, IUP has evolved from a teacher-training institution into a doctoral research university recognized for its commitment to student success and achievement. IUP’s Impact 150 comprehensive campaign is designed to honor a legacy of educational excellence while looking toward a future of innovation, public service, and leadership in healthcare education, including the first college of osteopathic medicine at a public university in the commonwealth.