SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Massachusetts State Police held their 89th Recruit Training Troop Graduation ceremony Thursday morning at the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield. 

The 75 recruits, who began their time at the police academy in September of last year in New Braintree, began the event with a group demonstration before each member was presented with their state police badge.

State Police Interim Colonel Jack Mawn said this is the least amount of graduates the department has ever seen, which he believes is partly due to a national workforce shortage. He said during his graduation speech these new troopers will face many challenges in their new role.

Mawn said the key for the new troopers to be successful, as well as recruiting future generations of police officers, will be to establish strong relationships with their community.

"We want to make sure that the way we get to the outcome is the right way to get there," Mawn said. "And in order to do that, we have to engage the community, we have to build trust, we have to operate in a procedurally just way, and that's the way best way to build legitimacy in any community that we assist our municipal friends with, particularly in western Massachusetts."

Mawn said the graduating class will next be assigned to veteran state troopers, where they will shadow them for a few months before taking on more independent roles.