Bridget Andrews sat near the front of the expansive classroom, another navy-blue shirt among row after row of men and women in the largest recruiting class – 83, about three times the normal size – in the history of the Denver Sheriff Department.

On Day 3 of training, a class on ethics, she began to see how the department’s “mega class” could not only provide an infusion of desperately needed deputies but also jump-start a culture change.

“As big as this group is, we could have an impact immediately,” said Andrews, a 48-year-old Air Force veteran. “A class of 80 is going to help staffing a lot quicker. We’re the cavalry – and we’re coming.”

Beset by an embarrassing spate of expensive excessive-force cases and steady attrition that created a personnel shortage, the department continues to reinvent itself since a scathing review last year by outside consultants. That probe found problems at virtually every level and produced hundreds of recommendations, with culture change a recurring theme.

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DENVER, CO – JANUARY 6: Ethics teacher Michael Henry teaches new sheriff deputy recruits about ethics at the Sheriff Academy on January 6, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. The Sheriff Department has what is being called a “mega-class” of 87 recruits as part of an effort to revamp the culture of the department. The ethics class is part of the new emphasis at the department on de-escalation of incidents rather than using force. Henry is the Ethics Staff Director for the Denver Board of Ethics. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)

Helen H. Richardson