COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens signed on to an agreement with the U.S. Army that could provide a talent pool of candidates for years to come.
The agreement represents the Cobb County Sheriff's Office becoming the latest employer to join the Army's Partnership for Youth Success Program or PaYS.
Through the program, Army soldiers are guaranteed five interviews and possibly a job with employers in private business, academia as well as state and local public positions.
"The discipline and the skillset that these men and women obtain while they are serving their country is exactly what we look for in law enforcement and mainly for the sheriff's office. They make absolutely great candidates," Major Marvin Prince with the Cobb Sheriff's Office told 11Alive.
Prince said Owens himself is an Army veteran and the hope is the Army will be able to supply candidates that are both interested in law enforcement jobs and already have training that gives them a solid foundation for the job.
The roles soldiers could fill range from detention officer openings with the jail to other sheriff's office positions within the community. The opportunities come as the sheriff's office is looking to expand staffing.
"Conversations with the sheriff we should have some positions perhaps in patrol there are some things in the pipeline that is going to require more additional manpower," Prince said. "It will be several options for a person looking for law enforcement."
Prince said the starting salary for a sworn officer position with the Cobb County Sheriff's Office is $46,000, but he added there are various incentives, salary bumps depending on the shift an individual is working, and higher salaries available for candidates with a college degree or previous law enforcement experience.
When Owens took over as the county's sheriff in 2021, there were around 75 open positions within the office, according to Prince.
Through other efforts, they have made progress on hiring and the hope is the partnership with the Army will put them closer to full staff.
"We've had great success, but nevertheless we always continue to search for those qualified candidates to move forward to bring the sheriff's office into a great place in the future," Prince said.
Other law enforcement agencies around the country are already part of the PaYS program. In Georgia, only a handful of agencies are on the list, including the Floyd, Gwinnett, and Henry County Sheriff's Offices, as well as the state Department of Corrections and Law Enforcement Division within the Department of Natural Resources.