DANVILLE, Va. – Six new officers have joined the ranks of the Danville Police Department, but more are needed.

Despite the new hires, Danville still has about 15 vacancies on the local police department. Many veteran officers have retired while others have left law enforcement to accept jobs in other fields.

The department held a swearing-in ceremony for the new hires outside the Carrington Pavilion Tuesday morning.

These officers complete their five months of academy training this week and graduate from the Piedmont Regional Criminal Justice Training Academy Friday.

Chief Scott Booth asked each of the new officers, Zaccheus Davis, Michael Cagle, Tyquan Graves, Sheila Hughes, Bryanna McLaughlin and Cody Young, why they wanted to be police officers. The common theme among their response was to “be the change I want to see” and “to serve my community with integrity.”