Basic Academy Redesign Project

Colorado POST is redesigning the Basic Law Enforcement Training Academy (LETA) curriculum to better prepare recruits for the realities of modern policing. This new curriculum will be used by all POST-approved academies statewide, creating a consistent, research-informed academy experience that builds real skills — not just test performance.

The Academy Redesign Project (ARP) focuses on what recruits learn, while the Instructor Methodology (IM) Program focuses on how they learn it. Together, these two efforts form the foundation of Colorado’s modernized training model.

Why POST Is Redesigning the Curriculum

Colorado’s current academy system is built on modular lesson plans created independently by each LETA. This variability has led to differences in graduate readiness and missed opportunities for integrated, hands-on learning. Law enforcement leaders, instructors, and community members have asked for a training model that:

• Reflects the complexity of real police work;
• Builds communication, ethics, decision-making, and emotional intelligence;
• Prepares recruits more effectively for field training;
• Supports consistency across all academies.

 

The Unified Curriculum Redesign Project answers this call. It is grounded in the best available learning science and in POST’s Ten Key Mindsets (PDF), which emphasize how the job should be done —professionally, ethically, and in partnership with communities.

What the Unified Curriculum Includes

The Unified Curriculum Redesign Project will build a curriculum that moves beyond lectures and isolated lessons. Instead, in the new curriculum recruits will learn through:

• Realistic scenarios;
• Case studies and guided decision-making;
• Hands-on skill development;
• Integrated lessons that connect law, tactics, communication, wellness, investigation, ethics, and situational judgment.

 

The curriculum is being designed to mirror the complexity of real policing, helping recruits build competence, confidence, and judgment from day one.

 

Once launched, the curriculum will be standardized across the state and provided at no cost to all POST academies.

How the Redesign Is Being Built

POST is using internationally recognized backward design principles to build the curriculum. This process includes:

1. Completed a Statewide Job Analysis. Identified what new officers must know and be able to do to succeed on the job. This helped shape the framework for categorization into competency themes, such as legal foundations and criminal investigation.

2. Developed Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs). Collaboratively wrote clear statements describing what recruits should understand and be able to demonstrate by the end of the academy — and in various contexts in the field. The ILOs are the building blocks of the curriculum and are organized into relevant categories.

3. Creating instructional materials and associated assessments. Currently, in partnership with subject matter experts, POST is building hands-on, interactive learning experiences for each ILO that support durable knowledge, retention, and transfer —not just exam success.

4. Organizing and sequencing all instructional materials and assessments. In partnership with stakeholders, POST is organizing and sequencing all curriculum materials to create a coherent, statewide structure that builds logically from foundational knowledge to more complex decision-making.

5. Building an improved POST exam. POST is developing a new exam that aligns with the redesigned curriculum and ILOs, ensuring that assessment reflects real-world knowledge, applied skills, and the expectations of modern policing.

This work is led by POST in partnership with:

• Law enforcement subject matter experts;
• Field trainers;
• Academy leaders and instructors;
• Legal professionals;
• Wellness and community stakeholders;
• Instructional design experts. 

These experts are organized into two primary teams. The Curriculum Development Team (CDT) is building the instructional materials and assessments, and the Alignment Team ensures the curriculum is coherent and sequenced appropriately across topics.

Where We Are Now

As of late 2025:

• Most Intended Learning Outcomes have been validated by SMEs and stakeholders including the CDT and Alignment Team;
• The Curriculum Development Team is creating assessments, instructional materials, and scenario-based activities aligned to each ILO;
• A dedicated scenario development task group is being formed to ensure high-quality, reality-based learning;
• Early drafts of curriculum components are undergoing review for instructional quality and coherence;
• Pilot testing of curriculum components is expected to begin in 2026.

How the Curriculum Redesign Connects to the IM Program

The redesigned curriculum depends on instructors who can deliver it effectively. That is why POST created the Instructor Methodology (IM) Program — to ensure every instructor statewide has the tools to teach using active learning, realistic scenarios, and guided decision-making.

The new curriculum will establish what is taught. The IM Program addresses the how, ensuring that instructors can bring those goals to life in the classroom.

 

Learn more about the IM Program.

How You Can Be Involved

If you have subject matter expertise or experience in adult learning or curriculum development, POST welcomes your participation in the Curriculum Development Teams.

Submit a resume, letter of intent, and letter of agency support to gwen.burke@coag.gov.