DANVERS – Clad in helmets, gripping their weapons, women at the Danvers Armory prepared for battle as spectators cheered them on.It wasn?t an underground fight club, but rather the last day of training for students at the Essex County Sheriff?s Department Academy, which graduates Wednesday.The class of 32 students – 1/3 of whom are women – has one of the largest groups of female recruits to come through the academy.?It?s a priority of Sheriff Frank Cousins? to have a diversified workforce in the ranks of staff,” said Paul Fleming, spokesman for the Sheriff?s Department. “He?s greatly increased the number of women (employees) and made it a benchmark.”Upon graduation, Fleming said the number of officers at the Essex County House of Correction will rise to approximately 400.?The females generally have more of a calming effect with prisoners,” said Jason Ebacher, assistant superintendent and director of training and staff development. “Yes they get catcalls, but it?s a matter of disciplining inmates when that happens.”One of those women is Christine Fishken, a seasoned veteran of the Sheriff?s Department.?It?s a very tough environment for a woman, you have to have thick skin to work in there,” she said. “But at the same time, it?s all about having fantastic people to work with and train you for those situations.”Fishken, a Peabody native, began her career as a correctional officer in 2000 and rose to the rank of Sergeant in 2005 and later Assistant Director of Training in the same year.?I?ve had a phenomenal career,” she said. “Ninety percent of the job is communication. You have to be able to know the difference between right and wrong and address problems right away.”The intense nine week course covers the gamut of physical fitness and legal situations, with students being grilled on the topics on a regular basis. All officers are taught defensive tactics in the event they physically engage with an inmate.At first glance, 23-year-old Jamie Johnson, a petite blue eyed blond, seems almost out of place in a room full of future correctional officers. But the Lynnfield native, who studied Criminal Justice at New England College in N.H., feels at ease both with the group and in a jail setting, especially since her brother is in the same line of work.?My belief is that they (inmates) are more dangerous on the streets versus in jail,” she said. “Sometimes you?ll get a ?hey baby?, but you can get the same thing anywhere. But bottom line, I may be a woman, but I?m also an officer, so you have to put a stop to that type of behavior right away.”