Blog: KPD News & Alerts

KPD to renew ties with U.S. Army PaYS program during January 23 ceremony

The Knoxville Police Department will officially renew its ties with the U.S. Army's Partnership for Youth Success (PaYS) program during a January 23 ceremony.

The KPD is one of more than 500 civilian employers to join the program since its inception in 2000. The ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. It will be held at the Phil E. Keith Training Center at 6388 Cement Plant Road in Knoxville.

Presiding over the ceremony will be Lt. Col. Rick Frank, commander, U.S. Army Recruiting Battalion Nashville, and KPD Chief of Police Eve Thomas. Soldiers from the Nashville U.S. Army Recruiting Company will help open the ceremony.

“The Knoxville Police Department remains committed to utilizing all of the resources available to us to maximize our candidate pool,” Thomas said. “We are thrilled to rejuvenate this partnership with the U.S. Army as it allows us to build relationships with potential applicants and support those who have served our country seeking a post-service career in law enforcement.”

"The U.S. Army is excited to reenergize our partnership with the Knoxville Police Department through its support of the PaYS program," Frank said. "Not only will their participation help offer opportunities to today's young men and women, but it will also accentuate the company's outstanding record of supporting veterans."

The Army's PaYS program matches new enlistees with companies that hire employees with specific military skills, so that the soldier has a potential employment opportunity once he or she leaves the service with an honorable discharge. Each soldier enlisting into the Army paired with a PaYS partner is guaranteed a job interview once they honorably leave the Army's ranks.

“We are excited to proactively engage the Army Pays program,” said KPD recruiter JaJuan Hamilton. “This will be an excellent opportunity to assist the department in filling our vacancies, and providing meaningful employment to Veterans. We appreciate Veteran’s service to our country, and we look forward to them continuing their service to the Knoxville community.”

Other area PaYs partners include Tennessee Valley Association, Eastman Chemical, Kentucky State Police and the Lee Company.

Media wishing to cover the event should contact Lee Elder at the USARB Nashville public affairs office at 615-871-4172 or [email protected]. Cell phone number is 615 818-9174.

Media personnel can also preemptively contact KPD Communications Manager Scott Erland for any questions at 865-216-0121 or [email protected].

For more information about the Army PaYS program, check out www.ArmyPaYs.com.

Posted by tmcdonell On 28 January, 2020 at 10:28 AM