Westwood Police Department Adds a Graduate to Its Ranks

Thanks to the Municipal Police Training Committee for contributing this news to Westwood Minute.

WORCESTER – On June 20th, the Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC) Executive Director Colonel Rick Rathbun (Ret.) and Boylston Academy Director Lisa A. Lane announced the graduation of 36 police officers from the MPTC Boylston Police Academy’s 35th Recruit Officer Class. The graduates include one from the Westwood Police Department, Thomas Moore. Along with his colleagues, Mr. Moore successfully completed over 20 weeks of intensive, standardized training in all aspects of law enforcement. The graduates will now serve as full-time officers representing 22 police agencies across Massachusetts.

“These graduates have demonstrated dedication, resilience, and a deep commitment to service," said MPTC Executive Director Colonol Rick Rathbun (Ret.). As they embark on their careers, we are confident that the cutting-edge standardized training they have received has equipped them with the skills and knowledge needed to uphold the highest standards of public safety. We commend them on this achievement and wish them a safe, successful, and fulfilling career ahead.”

In a graduation ceremony at the Doherty Memorial High School in Worcester, members of the 35th ROC took an oath and received their badges for service. The new officers represented several police departments and agencies, including Ashburnham, Berlin, Billerica, Bunker Hill Community College, Douglas, Franklin, Hopkinton, Lancaster, Littleton, Marlborough, Millbury, Montague, Princeton, Shrewsbury, Stoneham, Stoughton, Sudbury, Tewksbury, Ware, Westford, Westwood, and Wilmington. They join nearly 600 officers who have graduated from MPTC-operated academies in training year 2024-2025.

The MPTC’s commitment to academic excellence and world-class police training, the Recruit Officer Course provides over 800 hours of course curriculum designed to prepare student officers for the safe and effective performance of their duties. In keeping with mandates established by the landmark 2020 police reform law, the MPTC curriculum includes de-escalation training based on new use-of-force policies and regulations. Student officers also receive uniform training based on best practices related to essential modern-day policing needs, including effective communication skills, victim-centered and trauma-informed incident response, missing persons and human trafficking investigations, mental health-related emergency response, active shooter and hostile event response, patrol duties, and officer safety and wellness.

The MPTC develops and delivers training across the Commonwealth to more than 20,000 officers at every stage of their careers. An agency within the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, MPTC is responsible for the statewide standardization of police training, delivering a modernized training program that aligns with national best practices, public expectations, and legislative mandates put forward by the 2020 police reform law.