Collin County Sheriff Jim Skinner canceled the Citizens Academy's 30th class after the Commissioners Court voted to eliminate the sergeant who runs the program.

The position held by Sgt. Jessica Pond, the sheriff's office public information and public affairs sergeant, will be cut Oct. 1 as part of the county's FY2027 budget process, Skinner said in a statement posted Sunday, Aug. 23. The sheriff's office provides law enforcement and community outreach services to Murphy, Wylie and Sachse, and Pond's role is the sole position coordinating those efforts countywide.

"I do not believe it would be responsible to begin a new Academy without knowing how the program would be supported through its completion," Skinner wrote.

Class 30 had been scheduled to run from August through November. The cut removes the office's only position responsible for media relations, community engagement, crime prevention education and coordination of public events and presentations.

Skinner said he asked Commissioners Court how his office is expected to handle public information and media requests after Oct. 1.

No commissioner has responded.

The Commissioners Court vote occurred during a budget workshop before Skinner's Aug. 23 statement. The exact date of the workshop was not specified, and the FY2027 budget has not been formally adopted, leaving open whether the decision could still be reversed before final approval. No statement from any commissioner or County Judge Chris Hill has been made public.

The Citizens Academy is a seven-week program open to Collin County residents and workers 18 and older. Sessions meet twice a week from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the sheriff's office in McKinney and cover topics including criminal investigations, narcotics enforcement, tactical operations, jail operations and K-9 demonstrations. Each class accepts up to 40 participants.

A Facebook post sharing Skinner's statement drew 287 reactions and 128 comments by Tuesday, Aug. 25. Among the commenters, Dmitrii Selkov, who said he had been selected for Class 30, wrote that he planned to contact Commissioners Court to ask which members voted for the elimination, what savings it produces and whether the decision can be reconsidered.

Skinner called the academy a longstanding tradition and said he hopes to restore it in the future. No timeline for restoring the program or reassigning public information duties has been announced.

Residents with questions can contact the Collin County Sheriff's Office at (972) 547-5100.