NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Highway Patrol graduated its newest group of state troopers.
A total of 45 cadets earned their badges at the special ceremony, which took place at War Memorial Auditorium.
The select group of men and women beat out more than 1,500 other applicants for admission into trooper school.
They also outlasted 20 others who qualified but didn't satisfy the rigorous physical and mental testing required to get a badge.
"These people know what they're getting into,” said Colonel Tracy Trott, of the Tennessee Highway Patrol. “It's not an easy life, it's not an easy profession, but they accept the dangers. They accept the sacrifices that they make with their family and their personal life to do this job. It's a calling, it really is."
Thursday night's ceremony also marked the first time a THP graduation has been held on state capitol grounds.
