• William Suter, 30: A U.S. Coast Guard reservist, he taught agriculture to villagers in Gambia, West Africa, and organized school and women's groups while in the Peace Corps from 1996 to 1998. He managed a temporary agency before starting at the academy last week.

        “I enjoy the public service aspect that I had in the Peace Corps,” he said. “I'm looking for that again.”

        He's among the approximately two-thirds of the class who already meet the running requirement of a mile and a half in 13 minutes. His time on the first day: 11:56.

        • David Gregory, 29: He left the U.S. Marine Corps in July after a dozen years, five of them in Okinawa, Japan. He and his wife, Crystal, are enjoying being the new parents of adopted son Aiji Justice, four months.

        He moved to Cincinnati for the job after leaving Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. He's also glad to be near his father, who lives in Mason.

        “There's a lot of us who are almost 30 or a little over 30,” he said. “I think that brings some maturity. I'm really glad to see that.”

        • Carroll “Chip” Todd, 30: A former Philadelphia Eagle and arena football player, he's the one class members might expect to excel at the physical requirements.

        He is the biggest at 285 pounds, and the strongest, bench-pressing 370. But he's not fast enough yet. He was happy Wednesday to have finished the 1 1/2-mile run in 15 minutes without having to stop and walk.

        “I'm thinking, "If I get in a foot pursuit, am I good for a block? Yes. Two blocks? Probably. Three? That's pushing it,'” he said. “I have to work on that.”

        He's looking forward to continuing to be a role model, something he liked about playing football.

        • Angela Yesh, 32: A firefighter's daughter, she remembers planning to be a cop even at a young age when she acted out scenes from the police show Barney Miller. She and her sister were always the good guys, arresting their other siblings.

        Now working on her doctorate in philosophy, she thinks that discipline's emphasis on reasoning has prepared her well for police work.

        “In philosophy, we think about, "What is justice?' and "How can justice best be achieved?' I hope that I have something to contribute, a new perspective.”

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