Beaufort County Community College continues to strengthen law enforcement training with the successful completion of its second Patrol K-9 class. Officers from four different agencies spent 14 weeks and 540 hours in intensive training to build highly skilled canine units ready to assist in finding missing persons and apprehending suspects.
Graduates Representing Multiple Agencies
The graduating officers represent the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Haywood County Sheriff’s Department, North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections, and Savannah Police Department. Graduates include Corporal Scott Gashi and K9 Shadow of the Savannah Police Department; Officer Christopher Fortune and K9 Atlas of the Savannah Police Department; Deputy Joshua Jones and K9 Rocky of the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office; Deputy Hayden Green and K9 Bruer of the Haywood County Sheriff’s Department; and Officer Franklin Blanton and K9 Kapi of the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.
These officers committed significant time away from home and family to complete the rigorous program, which focuses on developing strong, reliable partnerships between handler and canine.
New K9 Confidence Training Facility Enhances Opportunities
Beaufort CCC is one of only a few colleges in Eastern North Carolina offering a patrol K-9 certification. To further enhance training opportunities, the college is building new facilities including a K9 Confidence Training Facility and a specialized rubble pile to support search and rescue operations. These resources will help law enforcement agencies across the region prepare for real-world emergencies.
Expert Instruction and Strong Partnerships
The college continues to partner with Ken Mathias of Orchard Knoll K-9 to deliver the program. Mathias, a veteran instructor with 45 years of experience, has trained teams from the Raleigh Police Department and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
During the graduation ceremony, Deputy Joshua Jones delivered remarks on behalf of the class. Ken Mathias and last year’s Gold Collar Award recipient, Greg Van Essendelft, honored Officer Christopher Fortune with this year’s Gold Collar Award for his hard work and positive attitude.
A Comprehensive Training Experience
The 14-week curriculum covered obedience training, drug detection, suspect apprehension, and both daytime and nighttime search and rescue techniques. Graduates also received instruction on ethical considerations and community engagement strategies, ensuring they are prepared to serve their communities with professionalism and skill.
Beaufort CCC is proud of the continued growth of its Patrol K-9 program and looks forward to welcoming law enforcement agencies to its new training facilities in the near future. The construction of the new K9 Confidence Training Facility was made possible with support from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Department, H&R Block, Wayne’s Tree Service, and IBX Ink & Thread.