LAPD SEEKING NEW BLUE; POLICE LOOK TO SCHOOLS TO FIND FUTURE RECRUITS AS HIRING GETS TOUGHER.

Byline: Steve Carney Staff Writer

Just the other day, Elena Perez drove a police patrol car for the first time and learned in SWAT training how to watch her partner's back. At 18, she is the future of the Los Angeles Police Department.

As one of the 46 students in a police academy magnet program's first graduating class, the Monroe High School senior is key to an urgent effort to replenish vacancies created by officer retirements.

``I want to be a role model for my community,'' said Perez, captain of cadets at Monroe High, one of three city schools to graduate police magnet students this year. ``I want to give back to those who gave to me. I think I'm already a role model to the ninth-graders.''

And the program is turning out gung-ho future cops at just the right time.

From 1995 to 1999, the number of people applying to join the LAPD dropped 64 percent, while the number of officers leaving - whether through retirement, resignation, termination or death - more than doubled.

Low unemployment and the recent booming economy have dried up the LAPD's traditional pool of recruits, said Cmdr. Betty Kelepecz, head of personnel. Instead those candidates are going into jobs that are ``more lucrative, and less stressful, and less dangerous. They don't have to worry about getting shot.''

When Mayor Richard Riordan was elected in 1992, he promised to add 3,000 new officers to the department. But LAPD recruiters have been fighting an uphill battle recently.

``The reason we're having trouble recruiting entry-level officers is because of the strong economy,'' said LAPD recruiting Officer Frank Banuelos said. ``Not only are we experiencing that problem, but law enforcement on the whole is.

``We have been hiring people, but we're just maintaining our work force,'' he said.

Kelepecz said about one in 15 applicants actually passes enough hurdles to get into the police academy. And the department wasn't luring enough recruits even to fill classes at the academy.

So the department began looking outside the city for prospective cops, something it had done only sporadically before.

The new techniques seem to be working - last year the department was averaging 529 applicants a month. Last month it had 2,770.

And the department started working four years ago with the Los Angeles Unified School District, which created police academy magnet schools at Monroe and schools in South Central and East L.A. Since then, others have opened in Reseda and San Pedro.

With their lessons in fingerprinting, report writing and courtroom procedures, the schools-within-schools are preparing their students for careers in law enforcement, even though the teens are at least three years from being old enough to join the force.

``The program started four years ago to raise our own homegrown police officers,'' said Lynda Schwarz, coordinator of Monroe's magnet school.

Of the 46 graduating seniors from the original three schools, 28 say they're planning careers in law enforcement, and 20 of those have already signed up to be technical reserve officers in the LAPD.

As for the rest, two want to be firefighters, seven are going into the military, and others are eyeing careers in social work, computer science and journalism.

At the academy, Perez and the other cadets study evidence analysis in their forensic science classes, learn report writing in composition classes, and go on field trips with the LAUSD police SWAT team.

And in addition to the rigors of their academic classes, the weight room and the obstacle course, the magnet students are graded on their participation in community service activities.

``If I wasn't in the magnet program, I wouldn't be involved in my community. It totally changed my perspective,'' said cadet Lt. Anthony Pena, an 18-year-old senior from North Hills, who wants to join the LAPD after four years of college.

And like Perez, who wants to double major in English and political science at Pepperdine, 41 of the graduates are going on to college.

``By the time the Police Department gets these kids, they will be so well trained,'' said Roberta Weintraub, the former school board member who founded the police magnet program.

Kelepecz said that preparation will give the kids a better chance of making the cut to get into the academy when they reach the minimum age of 20 1/2. For one thing, they know what crimes or other stumbles along the way could disqualify them from joining the force, and they have already gotten a taste of what the job will be like when they get there.

``They're living in the L.A. police world and understand what they're committing to,'' she said.

During a weeklong recruiting campaign in New York City earlier this month, the department tested 1,700 candidates. And recruiters have taken their show ofroadway, as well, to Seattle, Sacramento, Tucson, Pittsburgh, Denver and Chicago.

``We received so many letters from across the United States, we kind of took the show on the road,'' Banuelos said.

One obvious selling point is the L.A. climate. Another is the salary - LAPD starts officer about $41,000 a year, while New York City pays about $31,000, Banuelos said. And though San Francisco starts at $45,000, he said advancement there is much slower than with LAPD.

But, Banuelos noted, ``you can't get into this line of work because of the money. You have to do this because you really want to serve, because you want to help people.''

``It's a great career. It's an opportunity to serve your community,'' he said.

In addition to the out-of-state forays, the department has streamlined its recruiting process, begun offering ``finder's fees'' of up to $250 for city employees who bring in police recruits, and started offering $2,000 relocation allowances for officer candidates from more than 150 miles away. A promotional campaign featuring television, radio and billboard advertisements is also in the works.

Kelepecz said she didn't think problems such as the Rampart corruption scandal have hindered LAPD's recruiting efforts, because departments nationwide are having the same difficulty drawing applicants.

In addition, reflecting on how naive she was when she joined the department at age 23, she said young people have their own reasons for wanting to become officers and may be unaware or unconcerned about the problems.

For some of the magnet-school cadets, though, the scandal centering on an officer who said he framed suspects has just strengthened their desire to become part of the department, Perez said, ``to prove people wrong.''

``Hey, just because he did it, doesn't mean that we're going to do it,'' she said. ``And we're going to show you. Actions speak louder than words.''

CAPTION(S):

6 photos, chart

Photo:

(1 -- color) Police cadets make their way to class after a morning inspection at James Monroe High School. In conjunction with the Los Angeles Police Department, the school is one of several offering a police magnet school for students interested in law enforcement careers.

(2 -- color) Cadets Terry Johnson, left, and Brooks Walker make their way through the overhead bars portion of the obstacle course, part of their training at the Monroe High police magnet.

(3 -- 5 -- color) Above, police cadets stand at attention on the blacktop during inspection at James Monroe High School. At left, as other cadets watch, Brooks Walker leaps over a wall in the obstacle course. Police recruiters are looking to area high schools in an effort to replenish LAPD's work force. Below, drill instructor David Muth, 18, gives orders to cadets during morning drills.

Photos by Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer

(6 -- color) no caption (graduating cadets tossing hats)

Craig Mailloux/Staff Photographer

Chart: LAW REINFORCEMENT