Lowell officials outline hiring changes, prep courses as police staffing lags

Lowell City Public Safety Committee members heard detailed staffing and recruiting updates from the Lowell Police Department on July 22 as officials described efforts to accelerate hiring, expand outreach and run free exam-preparation sessions.

The update centered on four items requested by the committee: an assessment-center preparation course, the city’s upcoming civil service exam, a new hybrid (local registry) hiring pathway, and work by the department’s Citizens Advisory Committee.

Chief Greg Hudon told the committee, “Right right now, our staffing level is at about 214 officers. We are budgeted for 251 officers.” He said 15 recruits are already in training — five at the Lowell Police Academy and 10 at another academy at Northern Essex Community College — and that those graduations should bring sworn strength to about 230, before accounting for attrition and officers on long-term disability.

Deputy LeBlanc described how the hybrid or local registry approach is intended to shorten the time between application and having officers “boots on the ground.” Under the hybrid model, trained, already-certified officers can be placed on a rolling list and require a two- to four-week field on-boarding rather than a 24-to-26-week academy plus a longer post-academy program. Deputy LeBlanc said the department prioritized 16 sworn, certified applicants from a larger applicant pool and planned five interviews for an initial set of hires.

The department stressed limits and safeguards: as Deputy LeBlanc explained, the hybrid pathway can account for no more than 50% of hires over a five-year span, and the city must still draw from the civil service list for the remainder.

Captain Nobrega outlined outreach and preparation work for the civil service exam. She said the department will run three informational sessions the week of July 28 at the Training Division (115 Middlesex Street) — July 28, 3–7 p.m.; July 29, 5–9 p.m.; and July 31, 3–7 p.m. — and a vendor-led civil service exam preparation course tentatively scheduled for August (vendor confirmation pending). Captain Nobrega said the department pays for the prep course and that the informational sessions will include on-site help to complete applications and fee-waiver guidance.

Committee members pressed for diversity and language-capacity goals. Deputy LeBlanc provided demographics: the department’s 214 sworn officers were, at the time of the meeting, roughly 70% white, 18% Hispanic, 8% Asian and 4% Black; 29 officers (about 14%) are female. Over the past five years the department hired 64 officers: roughly 58% white, 30% Hispanic and 6% each Asian and Black, indicating a modest increase in Hispanic representation and rising Asian representation among newer hires. The deputy also noted that, as of the committee meeting, only 33 Lowell residents had applied for the upcoming civil service test while earlier years had seen higher local applicant counts.

Committee members and members of the Citizens Advisory Committee, chaired by George Prokop, urged continued outreach to underrepresented communities and multilingual promotion of sessions. Prokop said the advisory group focuses on community events (Coffee with a Cop, bike rodeos and youth outreach) and on correcting misinformation seen on social media.

Officials referenced statewide trends. Chief Hudon cited a national/IACP summary on recruitment and retention challenges and listed common barriers: lack of applicants, competition from better-paying agencies, difficulty recruiting diverse candidates and limited recruiting budgets. The department said it was using targeted social media, cadet and “grow your own” programs and partnerships with other agencies to expand applicant pools.

Committee direction and next steps included continuing outreach, running the scheduled informational and prep sessions, keeping an open rolling hybrid registry for certified officers, and returning the committee and Citizens Advisory Committee to report further. The meeting recessed on a motion to continue the session and the chair asked staff to schedule the item for the committee’s next meeting.

At the meeting the department provided concrete dates and contact points for applicants; the civil service exam itself was announced as upcoming in September (application window still open), and the department asked council members to help circulate session information. No formal votes on policy changes were recorded at the July 22 meeting; committee members agreed to reconvene and requested further reports and follow-up materials.