A-B Tech’s Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) program is graduating its largest class in 10 years on Wednesday, June 18, with 28 students ranging in age from 20 to 52. The Spring 2025 class had a 100 percent pass rate on the state licensing exam, and all graduates have jobs lined up with local enforcement agencies.
Ed Solomon, 52, who earned top honors as the class Trailblazer Award winner, is fulfilling his longtime goal of becoming a police officer after putting his plans on hold two decades ago when his children were young. Solomon, who has varied experience as a personal trainer, high school coach, and assistant teacher, said he hopes to one day apply that experience as a high school resource officer.
“Being around young adults for so long has given me the experience of how to be a person of authority, but still respect and hear them out,” he said.
Solomon’s fellow classmates helped elect him as Trailblazer Award Winner, citing the Los Angeles native’s natural leadership skills and supportive ways. “He is the dad of the group,” one student said in a survey. “He’s a friend on hard days and shows up for all of us.”
Solomon is excited to be joining the Asheville Police Department around the same time as his 22-year-old son, an Appalachian State University graduate who is taking the state exam later this month. Seeing his son study to become a police officer, Solomon said, sparked his own passion.“It lit a fire for me again,” he said. “I thought it would be cool to be on the same timeline within the same year or so and do that together.”
BLET Director Daryl Fisher said police officers today often do much more than just enforce the law. Confronted with problems such as the nation’s growing rate of opioid addiction, officers frequently must tap into a complex set of skills when answering a crisis call. The NC BLET program is designed to provide those skills and to emphasize emotional intelligence, cultural diversity, de-escalation, and mental health, along with physical training, Fisher said.
“We stress to our students that preventing crime and making a difference in their community is of the utmost importance … If (they) can go home at the end of their shift knowing they’ve done everything possible to make a difference, then that is the best feeling they can have.”
Fisher said this year’s class came together to help each other succeed during an extremely rigorous program. “Being a large class, we feared physical closeness would be a challenge. It was not … There was zero drama. I hate to admit it, but this class is now my favorite.”
Awards presented to the Spring 2025 BLET graduates include:
- Trailblazer Award: Ed Solomon
- Top Gun (Highest firearms score): Ethan Moore
- Highest Grade Point Average: Dradon Ingle
- Highest State Exam: Chandler Hensley and Zachary Stout
- Most Improved Physical Fitness: Justin Cross
- Steadfast Award (Class Generated): Justin Cross
- Best Instructor: Michael Sorensen, Asheville Police Officer
Learn more about A-B Tech’s BLET program at Basic Law Enforcement Training Overview or call (828) 398-7900.