The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey welcomed 71 recruits from the Port Authority Police Department’s (PAPD) 123rd class during a graduation Friday at St. Joseph High School in Metuchen, N.J. The new recruits, who represent a class benefiting from one of the agency’s most intensive outreach programs intended to identify the most highly qualified recruits drawn from a broad spectrum of backgrounds, join the agency as it bolsters its security initiatives and capabilities amid an evolving threat landscape.
The recruits received their official PAPD shields and identification at a ceremony held at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum in Lower Manhattan earlier in the week, a reminder of the department’s enduring mission and sacrifices made by their predecessors, including the 37 PAPD officers who were killed on 9/11. Among the graduating class are two officers whose father and grandfather responded to the 9/11 attacks at the World Trade Center.
“The Port Authority Police Department stands among the most respected law enforcement agencies in the country, charged with protecting some of America’s most vital infrastructure,” said Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole. “Their outstanding service and professionalism ensure that millions of people can travel safely and confidently across the region and beyond, and we welcome these 71 new recruits to this extraordinary force.”
“Ensuring the safety of both our travelers and employees is our highest priority, which is why we rely on an exceptional police force to carry out that mission,” said Port Authority Executive Rick Cotton. “We proudly welcome these 71 new officers into the ranks of the PAPD and are especially proud of the extensive outreach effort to ensure a high-quality pool of recruits.”
“These officers are stepping into service at a pivotal moment, when the threats we face are growing more complex, more widespread, and more tech-savvy than ever before. From traditional risks to advanced cyberattacks, the challenges to our infrastructure are constant and evolving,” said Port Authority Chief Security Officer Greg Ehrie. “These new members of the PAPD strengthen our ability to meet those challenges head-on and reinforce our commitment to keeping the public safe across every corner of our transportation network.”
“This department is charged with protecting hundreds of thousands of lives every single day, and our officers fulfill that duty with unmatched precision, unwavering professionalism, and a deep sense of honor,” said Port Authority Police Superintendent Edward Cetnar. “Graduating from the Port Authority Police Academy is no small accomplishment. It demands relentless discipline, unshakable resilience, and exceptional strength of character. We welcome these new officers to the one of the most elite police departments in the nation.”
The rigorous recruitment effort targeting qualified candidates brought in a broad spectrum including African American, Hispanic/Latino and Asian recruits. Additionally, the class brings a wealth of linguistic diversity with nine languages spoken, including Spanish, Korean, Bengali, Albanian, Turkish, Haitian Creole, Ukrainian, and Chinese (including the Cantonese, Fujianese and Mandarin dialects) in addition to English.
A quarter of the class are women, the highest female representation of any PAPD class. Almost half of the class enters the force with prior experience in law enforcement, and 13 percent are military veterans.
The incoming class arrives six months after the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners approved the agency’s 2025 budget, which included a record investment of more than $1 billion in safety and security operations. This funding is designed to enhance the agency’s overall security posture and support new initiatives to address both traditional and emerging threats, including cyber and terrorism-related risks.
The PAPD academy is recognized as one of the most rigorous law enforcement training programs in the nation, requiring 26 weeks of intensive instruction. Recruits underwent comprehensive training in New York and New Jersey state laws, police procedures, firearms usage, first aid, and counterterrorism techniques. In addition to tactical preparedness, the academy emphasizes cultural sensitivity, ethical responsibility, and historical awareness as core components of modern policing.
