Huntsville’s Drake State Community & Technical College is the latest Alabama community college to form a campus police department and is seeking a police chief.

“Our college is dedicated to providing a safe and secure environment for its campus community,” Drake State President Dr. Patricia Sims said in announcing the plan. “With this in mind, we are seeking to hire the best qualified and trained officers to achieve this goal.”

Police officers will provide more protection and increased confidence for students, faculty and staff, Alabama Community College System chief safety and security officer Mark Bailey said.

“While Drake State has a few reported crimes on its campus, a strong officer presence will hinder anyone considering committing a crime,” Bailey said. “Campus police officers have full powers of arrest and will be responsible for conducting complex misdemeanor and felony investigations on campus property.”

Police officer candidates will have an “intensive background check” and go through a polygraph examination and psychological evaluation, the system said.

The state community college system helps pay the setup costs for a campus police system. It has launched seven in the past two years.

Gadsden State, Snead State, and Chattahoochee Valley Community colleges are in the process of selecting police chiefs, the system said. During the last two years, Trenholm State, Reid State, and Lurleen B. Wallace Community Colleges have established police departments that are now operating.

Drake was established in Huntsville in 1961 as a historically black community college. It offers students “affordable university-transfer 2-year and technical degrees certificates, adult and continuing education, and customized technical skills training for Huntsville/Madison County employers.”