The Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training recently announced the graduation of its 401st Basic Police Class.

The Basic Police Class is 16 weeks long and includes dozens of training areas such as survival skills, firearms, emergency vehicle operations, ethics, cultural diversity, problem solving, community policing, elder abuse, drug recognition and more.

Due to the pandemic, a private ceremony took place Nov. 19 at the Oregon Public Safety Academy in Salem.

Graduating members include Police Officer Steven Carlson of the Sweet Home Police Department and Police Officer Daniel Granillo of the Corvallis Police Department.

Local campground wins award

Kampgrounds of America, the world’s largest family of family-friendly, open-to-the-public campgrounds, recently announced that the Albany/Corvallis KOA Journey has earned the 2021 KOA President’s Award.

The award was presented Nov. 17 at KOA’s Annual International Convention.

The KOA President’s Award is presented to those campgrounds meeting exceptional quality standards and receiving high customer service scores from their camping guests. KOA surveys hundreds of thousands of campers each year regarding their KOA camping experience.