THE ACADEMY - LASD CLASS 368
Returning for a second season, The Academy is a riveting look at the various types of people who believe they have what it takes to join one of the top law enforcement organizations in the country, patrolling some of the meanest streets in this hemisphere.

When I first saw the spots for Fox Reality's returning series The Academy: LASD Class #368, I wondered - are we now going to select police officers in a manner similar to Top Chef? Some of my friends thought that was a keen idea but the thought of Fox News watching Americans selecting Rambos and Paul Kerseys to wear a badge I found a bit troubling.

Thankfully, it hasn't come to that yet (it won't be long, trust me) but what The Academy does offer is a stark look behind the scenes in law enforcement as the instructors break down recruits and reconstruct those who survive the process into proper Los Angeles Sheriff Department deputies.

Like any 'reality' program there are glaring contrivances and heightened drama aplenty, this show is cast like a TV drama on both on the recruit and drill instructor levels but that doesn't lessen the impact or make the results any less devastating (or embarrassing) for those hapless souls that fail to make the grade.

To give the production added dramatic continuity there are individuals that flunked out on the first season returning for another try in addition to several recruits who never should have made it through the front door in the first place, again to boost the humiliation factor that is essential in 'reality TV.'

I found the first hour a bit empty (everyone has to be introduced, after all) but Fox Reality is offering a two episode premiere that promises to be more fulfilling.The Academy: LASD Class #368 debuts on Fox Reality Saturday, May 24th at 9:00pm ET.

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Reviewed by Billy Ingram, as seen on VH1, Trio and Bravo.

THE DRILL BEGINS AGAIN
THIS SPRING ON FOX REALITY CHANNEL WITH
“THE ACADEMY: LASD CLASS #368”
A New Class of Recruits Brings The Second Season Of Fox Reality Channel’s Original Series “The Academy” to a Whole New Level

Los Angeles, Calif. (March 17, 2008) The Fox Reality Channel Original groundbreaking series “The Academy” returns to television for its second season with “The Academy: LASD Class #368” debuting on Saturday, May 24 at 9p ET/PT on Fox Reality Channel, the only all reality, all the time cable and satellite network. “The Academy: LASD Class #368,” produced by Scott Sternberg Productions, brings viewers a rare, behind-the-scenes account of the grueling training process the recruits endure to become a Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriff.

“The Academy: LASD Class #368” captures one of the toughest and most rigorous Sheriff’s training programs in the nation, and reveals to the audience the raw emotion, suspense and commitment needed from the recruits and their families. Cameras follow them during the strenuous 18-week process consisting of weapon training, managing aggressive assailants, and the intricacies of gang warfare, among other procedures. The training program tests the recruits’ endurance, discipline and strength, and not all of them will have what it takes to make it all the way to graduation.

Captain Sue Kopperud, Sergeant Mark Wilkins, Deputy Dwight Miley, Deputy Sidra Sherrod, Deputy Rene Garcia, Deputy Pete Enciso and Deputy Raymond Jones return, and joining the cast is Officer Ryan Peterson. These drill instructors whip this new class of recruits into shape, and this season will reveal even more about the people behind the badge.

“The first season of ‘The Academy’ was significant because it gave audiences the first ever glimpse into the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s training program, and the second season promises to be even more riveting,” said David Lyle, President, Fox Reality Channel. “This season’s new group of recruits brings their unique stories and challenges to the show, and viewers will also be able to get closer than ever to the lives of the drill instructors.”
Scott Sternberg, President and Founder of Scott Sternberg Productions, said, “This season we’ve had greater access to this unique training program, and we’ve gotten more up-close and personal with the Academy in order to reveal just how tough it is to become part of this elite law enforcement agency. The stories we tell are exciting, dramatic and touching.”
This spring Fox Reality Channel will celebrate its third anniversary, as the network continues to offer fans of reality television more of their favorite shows and new original programming. The premiere of “The Academy: LASD Class # 368” completes the network’s stellar spring lineup, shortly following the finales of the Fox Reality Channel original series “American Idol Extra” and “Paradise Hotel 2.”