FROM STAFF REPORTS

COLUMBIANA – Shelby County Sheriff’s Dep. J. Bamberg has been awarded The Association of Chiefs of Police Foundation’s “Combat Veterans in Law Enforcement” (CVLE) Scholarship.

The sheriff’s office announced the award in a press release Friday afternoon.

Since 2004, The International Association of Chiefs of Police Foundation and Grantham University have teamed up to provide an opportunity for full-time law enforcement officers to achieve their higher education degrees.

The national program awards scholarships annually that will cover tuition, textbooks, software and fees for the recipients to earn their undergraduate or graduate degrees at Grantham University.

The CVLE scholarship is awarded to full-time law enforcement officers who are also returning combat veterans. Bamberg currently serves in the United States Army Reserve as a captain, where he has served since 2000.

Bamberg received his commission from the Army as an officer from the University of Alabama where he also received a B.A. in Criminal Justice in 2007.

Bamberg has completed two tours in the Middle East, serving in both Iraq and Afghanistan.  Bamberg has been awarded numerous military awards including a Bronze Star Medal.

Bamberg’s service with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office began in 2008.  He is currently assigned to the Uniform Division.

The scholarship is valued at approximately $36,000, and it will afford Bamberg the opportunity to achieve his master’s degree.  Bamberg is the only recipient of the CVLE for this year out of a nationwide applicant pool.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Deputy Bamberg for his service to his country and to the citizens of Shelby County,” Sheriff Chris Curry wrote in the press release.