For Evanston Police Chief Frank Kaminski, the city’s Citizen Police Academy is just a school of Japanese fish.

Japanese carp grow to fit the pond they are put in, he explained at the academy’s 20th graduation ceremony Thursday night. And by enrolling in the academy, he said citizens also grow — they have expanded their own “ponds.”

“You have gone where not too many people have had the chance to go,” Kaminski told the class of 19 graduates, who have spent the past 12 weeks learning about everything from how to dust for fingerprints to how to take a 911 call.

About 50 family members, friends and academy alumni gathered in the gym of the Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave., to proudly watch the graduates join the ranks of the other 459 citizens who have completed the program since it started in 1995.

Tracy Kalm, one of two graduates who spoke to the crowd, used her time in the limelight to commend the Evanston Police Department.

Reciting a sing-song poem from a children’s book, Kalm introduced the crowd to Policeman Small, who “is a friend to all.”

Policeman Small is also a lesson to all.

“As we grow up, we become afraid, maybe even suspicious, of the men dressed in blue,” Kalm said. But, she said, EPD officers work hard to be polite and professional as they keep the city safe.

“They are the only police department I have found that have the word ‘courtesy’ on their pamphlets,” she said.

Graduate Saul Tafolla said he plans to use what he learned in the academy to start a formal neighborhood watch program.

Tafolla had his 2-year-old daughter in his arms as he crossed the stage to receive his diploma. His other daughter, he said, is 6.

“I want to help make a better neighborhood for my kids,” he said.

For Rev. John Norwood, the retired senior chaplain for EPD, this is the right attitude.

All citizens, he told the crowd, should do their best to help the police force, even if it is something as minor as sending the station a holiday card.

“Give a little bit of yourself, every day, ” he said.