Kansas City, Missouri – For Special Olympics Missouri athletes, the next trip to a training facility will not be about medals, scoreboards or competition. This fall, it will be about seeing police work from the inside.
The Kansas City Police Department is opening its Regional Police Academy to SOMO athletes for a first-of-its-kind Citizen Police Academy, creating a new way for officers and athletes with intellectual disabilities to meet, learn and build relationships face-to-face.
Special Olympics Missouri announced the partnership on August 27. The free program will take place at the Kansas City Regional Police Academy, 6885 NE Pleasant Valley Road, and organizers say the announcement has already attracted interest from families and coaches across the Kansas City area.
The new academy is being designed specifically for SOMO athletes. It builds on KCPD’s established Citizens Police Academy, an 11-week program that gives civilians a closer look at the people, equipment and procedures behind everyday police operations.
Participants in the traditional academy tour the crime laboratory, meet members of the K-9 and helicopter units, learn about investigations and hostage negotiations, and take part in a patrol officer ride-along. The SOMO version is expected to adapt the experience so athletes with intellectual disabilities can participate in an inclusive and supportive environment.
For some athletes, the program could provide their first opportunity to step inside a police academy or experience a patrol car from a perspective other than an emergency encounter. Organizers say the central goal is to help participants understand how policing works while giving them direct opportunities to get to know officers.
The partnership is also an extension of a relationship already built through years of joint events. Kansas City officers have supported Special Olympics Missouri through the Polar Plunge, Tip-a-Cop events and the Law Enforcement Torch Run. KCPD’s Police Athletic League has also worked with SOMO on sports activities.
This time, instead of officers joining athletes at competitions and fundraising events, the athletes are being invited into the officers’ training environment.
Special Olympics Missouri serves more than 12,000 athletes through year-round sports training and competition. Its Team Missouri delegation, known as “MO Magic,” recently returned from the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games in Minneapolis with 46 medals.
The new police academy adds another form of participation beyond sports, while continuing SOMO’s broader emphasis on inclusion and independence. For KCPD, it also expands a longstanding community outreach program to a group getting its own dedicated academy experience for the first time.
