PHOENIX — Students at a high school in Peoria, Ariz., may see several cuddly new additions when they come back to school next year.

Through an 18-month Puppy Raising Program, 12 students will have a puppy to raise and train every day to become affordable service dogs for military, police, fire and emergency service men and women who were injured while on duty.

Students will be assigned a puppy to live with. They will bring the puppy to classes, home and work as part of their training and care.

The pilot program, which will earn the students credit toward graduation, is a school partnership with the Foundation for Service Dog Support, a nonprofit organization that supports disabled and impaired individuals who have or need a service dog.

Gail Meserve, the lead instructor, will teach students how to train dogs to perform such tasks as opening doors and picking up objects and handing it to their owner. The class also will teach dog safety and care.

Meserve said that through grants and donations, the fully trained service dogs coming out of the program would cost $5,000 instead of $20,000 through a service-dog agency.

Jan Delgado, internship coordinator for Peoria High School, said participating students will learn not only how to train service dogs, but also about the community they are serving.

The class is open only to juniors, and students who sign up must also go through an interview with a four-person panel.

Andrea Ramirez, 16, signed up for the program. She said she knows it would be hard to raise and train a puppy every day but that it would be worth it because of the greater purpose it serves.

"Knowing that someone will benefit from all the work I do and the experience that I will get is a good reason to sign up," Ramirez said. "It works out for everyone."