KEYSFORASUCCESSFULPOLICEANDYOUTHPROGRAM

Connecticut’sPoliceandYouthProgrampromotespositiveyouthdevelopmentwhileworkingtoincreasethenumbersofpoliceofficerswhoareexperiencedandcomfortableworkingandinteractingwithyoungpeople.TheYouthDevelopmentTrainingandResourceCenterhasprovidedtechnicalassistancetotheseprogramsoverthelast6years,andhasidentified4keyelementsfoundinthemostsuccessfulandhighimpactprojects.PARTICIPANTENGAGEMENTSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgramspayspecialattentiontoengagingallparticipants:youth,policeandstaff.Theprojectsincludefunactivitiesthatareofinteresttobothyouthandadults.Duringtheplanningstages,itisimportantforyouthtobeinvolvedandfortheirinputtobeincludedtoensurethattheactivitiesareage-appropriateandappealing.Intheimplementationoftheplannedactivities,policearestronglyencouragedtobeactiveparticipants,notjustsupervisorsorfacilitators.Theprogramshouldreinforceyouthandpoliceworkingtogether,sharingresponsibilities,andcreatingpartnerships.RELATIONSHIPBUILDINGAcrucialcomponentofthePoliceandYouthProgramisrelationshipbuilding.Thisshouldbereinforcedthroughoutthelengthoftheprogram.Earlyintheprogram,participantsusuallytakeatriptoalocalropescoursedesignedtostrengthenrelationshipsandbuildteamwork.Duringregularprogramsessions,relationshipbuildingiseasilyreinforcedwiththeimplementationoficebreakers,energizersandothershortteambuildingactivities.Thisensuresthatthroughouttheprogramyouthandpolicearegettingtoknoweachotheronamorepersonallevelandbuildingrelationshipsthatwillremainaftertheprogramhasended.YOUTHLEADERSHIPDEVELOPMENTThePoliceandYouthProgramoffersgreatopportunitiesforyouthleadershipdevelopment.Somewaystodevelopyouthleadershiphaveincluded:§ Recruitingnewparticipants:youthcreateflyers,referyouthtotheprogram,andplanotherstrategiesto

recruitadditionalparticipants§ Becomingprogramambassadors:youthspeakabouttheirprojectaccomplishmentstocommunity

members,funders,orotheraudiences§ Mentoringyoungerparticipants:programalumnireturntotheprogramascounselorsandtakeonmore

responsibilitiesorolderparticipantsplanandconductactivitiesforyoungerteensorchildren§ Planningprogramandfundraisingactivitiestosupportacommunityserviceproject§ Representingtheirteamandcommunityatarecognitioneventorcross-siteprojectshowcase

REFLECTIONTimeforreflectionhasbeennotedasaveryimportantcomponentofthePoliceandYouthProgram.Thismeansgoingpasttheprogramactivitiesandreinforcingtheobjectivesoftheprogram.Reflectioncanbedoneinavarietyofways;journaling,pairingupandtalkingtoapartner,andgroupdiscussionscanallbeeffective.Reflectioncanbeaskingonequestionattheendofasessiontowrapuptheday.Itcanbeassimpleas“whatwasyourfavoritepartoftheday?”or“nameonethingyouwishwewouldhavedonedifferentlytoday.”Reflectiongivesparticipantsachancetomaketheconnectionbetweentheactivitiesandthelearningordesiredchangesintheyouthandadultprogramparticipants.

2 KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram

KEY#1:PARTICIPANTENGAGEMENTSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgramspayspecialattentiontoengagingallparticipants;youth,police

andstaff.Theprojectsincludefunactivitiesthatareofinteresttobothyouthandadults.Duringtheplanningstages,itisimportantforyouthtobeinvolvedandfortheirinputtobeincludedtoensurethattheactivitiesareage-appropriateandappealing.Intheimplementationoftheplannedactivities,policearestronglyencouragedtobeactiveparticipants,notjustsupervisorsorfacilitators.Theprogramshouldreinforceyouthandpoliceworkingtogether,sharingresponsibilities,andcreatingpartnerships.STRATEGIESTOINCREASEPARTICIPANTENGAGEMENT

USEPARTICIPANTNAMES:Atyourfirstfewmeetingsincludeactivitiesthatencouragethelearningofparticipantnames.Therearemanydifferentnamegamesandactivitiesthatcanbeemployedtoencourageyourprogramparticipantstolearneachother’snames.Duringintroductionsencourageparticipantstosharehowtheywouldliketobereferredto.Manytimespeopleprefertobecalledbyanicknameoryoucanalsofindthatpeopledonotliketohavetheirnameshortened.Policeofficersshouldalsosharehowtheywouldliketobereferredto.Youcanalsoprovidenametagsforthefirstseveralsessionssothatnamesareeasilyvisible.

CREATEAGROUPAGREEMENT:Asktheparticipantstocomeupwiththeirowngroundrules,onesthattheywillallagreetoobserveandlistthemonnewsprint.Makesuretoclarifythegroundrulesasneededtobesurethateveryoneunderstandsalltheideas.Bothadultandyouthparticipantsshouldcontributetothegroupagreement,andtheyallwillbeheldaccountabletofollowthosegroundrules.Duringtheprogramrefertoyourgroupagreementanddisplayitinavisiblelocationwhereitcaneasilybereferenced.

KEEPCOMMUNICATIONOPEN:Communicationisveryimportanttokeepingparticipantsengaged.Inbetweenmeetingsmakesuretosendoutreminderstoparticipantsaboutfuturemeetings.Followupwithparticipantsthatareunabletoattendasessionandtomakesuretheygetanyinformationtheymissed.Askyouthwhatthebestcontactmethodis,youmayneedtocontactthemthroughtext,emailorthroughsocialmedia.Anotheraspectofcommunicationisprovidingampleopportunitiesforyouthvoicetobeshared.Youthvoicereferstotheideas,opinions,attitudesandknowledgeofyouth.Givingtheyouthinyourprogramvariedopportunitiessharetheirvoiceandprovidetheirinputonissuesthatdirectlyaffectthemwillensurethattheycontinuetobeactivelyengagedinyourprogram.Someeasywaystoencourageyouthvoiceandtogetmoreyouthinputinclude:

§ Groupdiscussions§ Pairsorsmallgroupdiscussions§ Dotmocracy:votingorratingideaswith

stickerdots§ Thumbsup/downvoting

ACKNOWLEDGEPARTICIPANTFEEDBACK:Trytoincorporatefeedbackasmuchaspossiblesothatparticipantsfeelthattheyhaveavoiceandthattheyarebeingheard.Whenasuggestioncannotbeimplementeditishelpfultoexplainwhy.Thisallowsparticipantstounderstandthattheirfeedbackhasnotbeendismissedorignored.

ENCOURAGENEWPEOPLETOSHARETHEIRIDEAS:Manytimestherewillbeasubsetofindividualsinyourprogramwhowillbemorelikelytocontributetodiscussions.Aneasywaytoinviteotherpeopleto

KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram 3

shareideasistousethephrase“stepup,stepback”toencouragepeoplewhohavenotcontributedto“stepup”andaskpeoplewhohavealreadyprovidedfeedbackto“stepback”andgiveotherpeopleanopportunitytobeheard.Participantscangetcomfortablelettingmoreoutgoingpeoplespeakupandthisisaneasystrategytoemploytostillacknowledgetheindividualswhohavebeenparticipatingbutalsogiveanopportunitytothosewhohavenotspokenup.Anotherphrasethatcanbeusedis“sharethemic”whichservesasaneasyremindertogiveanopportunitytosomeonenew.Someyouthfinditeasiertojotideasdownfirstormeetinsmallgroupsbeforespeakinginfrontofafullgroupofyouthandpolice.

WAYSTOENCOURAGEMEANINGFULYOUTHPARTICIPATION

CHOOSING.Youngpeoplecanchoosewhichactivitiestheywishtoparticipateinandhowtheywishtoparticipateandcontributetothegroup.

DECISION-MAKING.Youngpeoplecanmeetonaregularbasistodiscussandmodifyexistingprogram.

PLANNING.Youngpeoplecanmeetregularlytoplanfutureprogramsorcommunityactivities.

ASSESSING.Youngpeoplecan“map”theircommunities,researchneeds,and/orengageinavarietyofprogramdocumentationandevaluationactivities.

COMMUNICATING.Youngpeoplecanregularlypresenttheprogramtooutsiders:talktodifferentcommunityaudiences,beonworkshoppanels,dositetours,orpresenttoakeyfunder.

VOICE.Youngpeoplecanfeelconfidentandencouragedtovoicetheirownviews,opinions,andideas.

TIPSFORPOLICEOFFICERSTOBUILD“INFORMAL”CONNECTIONSWITHYOUTH

Berelaxedandinformal,sittingnexttoyouthratherthanstandinginfrontthemorofftotheside Thinkbacktoyouradolescentyears,andbrieflysharean“awkwardmoment”thatyourecall

Avoid“teaching”butstillshareexplanationsaboutlawenforcement,asquestionsarise

Appearforsomeactivitieswithoutthefullpoliceuniformduringtheprogramyear Listenalot,bepatientandencourageyoungpeopletobrainstormorelaborateontheirideas

Trytofindtimefor1-1conversationswithmanyoftheyouthteammembers Havefunasyouengageintheteam-buildinggames,ratherthanappeartocompetewithyouth

Recognizeandcelebrateindividualcontributionsaswellasteamprogressandaccomplishments

Beyourself!

HELPFULRESOURCES:

ACTforYouthCenterforExcellence(www.act4youth.org)“BeingY-APSavvy:Aprimeroncreatingandsustainingyouth-adultpartnerships”

NationalYouthLeadershipCouncil(www.nylc.org) SearchInstitute–Discoveringwhatkidsneedtosucceed(www.search-institute.org) YouthDevelopmentTrainingandResourceCenter(www.ydtrc.org)ThemissionofYDTRCistoprovidetraining,consultation,assistance,curriculumandresourcedevelopmentservicesformiddleandhighschoolyouthleaders,programstaffandvolunteersthatworkwithinConnecticut’sdiverseyouth-servingorganizationsorschools.

4 KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram

KEY#2:RELATIONSHIPBUILDINGAcrucialcomponentofthePoliceandYouthProgramisrelationshipbuilding.Thisshouldbe

reinforcedthroughoutthelengthoftheprogram.Earlyintheprogram,participantsusuallytakeatriptoalocalropescoursedesignedtostrengthenrelationshipsandbuildteamwork.Duringregularprogramsessions,relationshipbuildingiseasilyreinforcedwiththeimplementationoficebreakers,energizersandothershortteambuildingactivities.

2TRUTHSANDALIETellthegroupthateachpersonwillintroducehim-orherselfbystatingtwotruthsabouttheirlifeandonelie.Therestoftheparticipantswillguesswhichstatementisthelie.

CHARTYOURLIFEThinkingbackasfarasyoucan,drawatimelinethatrepresentsyourlife.Considerthehighpoints,lowpoints,momentsofinspiration,levelingofftimes,whereyouarenow,andwhereyouseeyourselfinthefuture.Afteryouhavedrawnit,sharewhatitmeanswiththegroup.

HOUSEONFIREAsk,“Yourhouseisonfire,andeveryoneissafe.Youhavethirtysecondstorunthroughthehouseandcollectthreeorfourarticlesyouwanttosave.Whatwouldyougrab?Why?”Aftereveryonehasdonethis,thegroupcandiscusswhattheylearnedaboutthethingstheyvalue.

HUMANKNOTThisactivityworksbestingroupsof10-12.Haveeveryonestandinacircle,shouldertoshoulder.Askeveryonetoraisetheirrighthandandthengrabthehandofsomeoneacrossthecircle.Next,askeveryonetoraisetheirlefthandandthengrabthehandofadifferentperson.Tellthegrouptountanglethemselvesintoacirclewithoutbreakingthechainofhands.

“Nowweknowthatallpolicearen’trude…mean!Butthere’spoliceouttherethatcareforus,ourfeelings,andwatchoutforusifwemakebaddecisions.”

–Windsor,CTyouthparticipant

OfficerslearnedaboutpartneringwithyoungpeopleandsawleadershipinactionastheirgroupwasdirectedbytwoseniorsfromtheWatertownHighSchoolCookingClub.Theseoldergirlsdisplayedtheirculinaryskillsatadonut-makingsessionforWatertown’sPoliceandYouthprogramatSwiftMiddleSchool.Someofficershadneverbaked;noonehadmadehomemadedonuts.Officerssharedatheadquarters,whileyouthtookfavoritestotheirfamily(orateonthelatebus!).

KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram 5

THEBIGWINDBLOWSHaveeveryonestandinacircle,shouldertoshoulderandaskforonevolunteertostandinthecenter.Thepersoninthecentermustthinkofatruestatementaboutthemselves.Thentheywillsay“TheBigWindblowsthosewho_____________”followedbytheirstatement.Atthispointalloftheplayerswhosharethischaracteristicmustrunacrossthecircleandfindanewplacetostand.Thelastplayerleftinthecenterwillnowshareastatementaboutthemselves.Forexample,“TheBigWindblowsthosewhohavetraveledtoMexico,”andanypersonthathastraveledtoMexicowouldrunacrossthecircletoanewspot.

TOILETPAPERICEBREAKERGetarolloftoiletpaperandtellallthoseplayingnottotaketoomuchbuttotakehowevermuchtheywant.Oncealltheplayershavetakenthenumberofsheetstheywant,eachhastotellonethingaboutthemselvesforeverysheettheyhave.

WHOAMI?Prepareacardforeachpersonandwriteonitthenameofafamousmanorwoman.Onarrival,pinacardonthebackofeachpersonwhomustthenaskquestionsofeachotherinordertofindouttheiridentity.Whentheysucceed,thecardispinnedonthefrontofthem.

CROSS-SITERECOGNITIONSHOWCASE

Relationshipsarefosteredbothwithinteamsofpoliceandyouth,aswellasacrossdifferentprogramsitesthatrepresentthediversecommunitiesacrossConnecticut.Thehighlyinteractive4-hourSaturdayeventrecognizesyoungpeopleandofficersfromlargercities,smallersuburbsandruralareasinthestate.EachP-Yteamchooseshowtopresenttheirproject–byleadinganactivity,showingapowerpoint,displayingatri-foldposter,orshowingavideooftheirserviceinthecommunity.Teammembersreceivecertificates,agroupphoto,a“shoutout”afterlunchandachoiceofdessert.Thebenefitsarenumerousasalltheyouthandpolicehearcreativewaystostrengthenandbuild

trustingrelationshipswithlawenforcement,engagewithmanyofficersandteens,andfeelimportantaspartofasignificantstatewideproject.

“Ilearnednottobeafraidofpoliceofficers.”

–Hebron,CTyouth

6 KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram

KEY#3:YOUTHLEADERSHIPDEVELOPMENTThestructureofthePoliceandYouthProgramcallsforyouthandadultstoworktogetherandto

shareresponsibilitiesandoffersmanyopportunitiesforyouthleadershipdevelopment.Whenyoutharegivenanopportunitytotakeonaleadershiproleitisvitalthattheyarealsogiventhesupporttheyneedtobesuccessful.ListedbelowareseveralleadershipopportunitiesforyouththatareavailableinthePoliceandYouthProgramaswellasexamplesofhowtosupportyouthtakingonnewroles.YOUTHLEADERSHIPOPPORTUNITIESInordertobecomeleaders,youthneedtohaveopportunitiestoexplore,express,earn,belongandinfluence.Leadershipopportunitiesgiveyouththechancetoexperimentwithnewchallengingrolesandtestoutideasthatwillhelpthemgrow.

§ Createapresentationabouttheprogram§ Recruitnewparticipants§ Mentoryounger/newparticipants§ Facilitateanicebreaker§ Facilitateaclosingactivity§ Plananactivity§ Planafundraiser

§ Createasurvey/evaluation§ Createabudget§ Plananevent§ Createanewsletter§ Writeapressrelease§ Createamediacampaign§ Planacommunityserviceproject

YOUTHLEADERSHIPSUPPORTSYouthnotonlyneedopportunitiestobecomeleaders,theyalsoneedrelationshipsthatwillhelpnurtureandsupportthem.AccordingtoNewYork’sYouthDevelopmentInstitutecurriculumforAdvancingYouthDevelopment,therearethreemaintypesofsupportsthatareneededbyyouth:

EMOTIONALSUPPORT:thefriendshipandaffirmationyouthreceivefromothers,andtheirinvolvementincaringrelationships.

Scenario:Ayoungperson,Jaime,inyourprogramhasvolunteeredtocreateanewsletterfortheprogram.Theyhavenoideawheretostartandarefeelingoverwhelmed.

EmotionalSupport:OfficerSmith,anadultthatJaimehasastrongrelationshipwithremindshimthathedidagreatjobwhenhecreatedtherecruitmentflyerfortheprogramafewweeksbefore.OfficerSmithtellsJaimenottobenervousandthattheycanworktogethertobrainstormideasforthelayoutofthenewsletter.

MOTIVATIONALSUPPORT:highexpectations,standards,andboundariesthatencourageyouthtostrivetowardahighergoal.Somewaystoprovidemotivationalsupportincludethefollowing:

§ Informingyouthhowtheyareexpectedtoconductthemselves§ Providingyouthwiththeopportunitiesandencouragementtomeetexpectations§ Providingyouthwithrewardsnecessarytomeetexpectations§ Providingyouthwithclearmessagesregardingrules,norms,anddiscipline§ Providingyouthwithopportunitiestodiscussandmodifyboundariesasappropriate

Scenario:Threeyoungpeoplethatparticipatedinlastyear’sPoliceandYouthProgramareinvitedbackaspeerleaders.

MotivationalSupport:

KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram 7

Afewdaysbeforetheprogramstartsthepeerleadersattendanorientationwiththepoliceofficerthatwillbesupervisingthem.TheyaregivenaPeerHelperHandbookwhichdescribestheirresponsibilities,codeofconductanddetailsonwhattheyareexpectedtodo.

STRATEGICSUPPORT:coaching,feedback,anddiscussiontohelpyouthstayontrackandaccesstothepeopleandresourcestheyneedtoreachtheirgoals.

Scenario:TwoyouthfromthePoliceandYouthProgramvolunteertowriteapressreleaseaboutaneventtheirgrouphasplanned.

StrategicSupport:Apoliceofficerhelpsthetwoyouthwiththepressrelease.Sheprovidestheyouthwithexamplesfromsomelocalpublicationsonwhatpressreleaseslooklike,shegivesthemfeedbackontheirroughdraftsandconnectsthemtoacolleaguethatworksatalocalpublicationthatiswillingtopublishthepressrelease.

YOUTHLEADERSHIPHIGHLIGHTSINCONNECTICUTPROJECTSBLOOMFIELD:YouthleadersrunintergenerationalactivitysessionsforseniorsattheSeniorCenter.Officersevenbroughttheirownchildrentojointhefun,interactivegamesledbyhighschoolleaderswhoarepartoftheBloomfieldCommunityCrusaderspoliceandyouthteam.NEWHAVEN:YouthleadersfromYouthRightsMedia,Inc.designedtheprocess,craftedthequestionsaboutinteractionsbetweenyouthandpolice,andthenfacilitatedsmallgroupsofyouthandpoliceaspartofthecross-siterecognitioneventheldatonelocalprojectsite.Volunteersvideotapedsegmentsoftheinteractionsandgroupresponsesforlaterviewingbyanotherprogramtostimulatetheirdiscussion.

BRIDGEPORT:YouthfromCreativeYouthProductionsleadpoliceandyouthteammembersindesigningandpracticingskits–givingeveryoneachancetotryout“onthespot”interactionsthatkeepallcool.

8 KeysforaSuccessfulPoliceandYouthProgram

KEY#4:REFLECTIONTimeforreflectionhasbeennotedasaveryimportantcomponentofthePoliceandYouthProgram.

Thismeansgoingbeyondtheprogramactivitiesandreinforcingtheobjectivesoftheprogram.Reflectioncanbedoneinmanyways;journaling,pairingupandtalkingtoapartner,andgroupdiscussionscanallbeeffective.Somereflectionmethodsincludewriting,reading,tellinganddoing.Reflectiongivesparticipantsachancetothinkcriticallyabouttheirexperiences,buildasenseofself-awarenessandthinkofwaysaprogramcanbeimproved.SeealsoReflectandImprove:AToolkitforEngagingYouthandAdultPartnersinProgramEvaluation(2005)forexcellentresourcestostrengthenyourprogramplanningandevaluationatwww.theinnovationcenter.org.

PEAKANDPITGoaroundthegroupandaskeachparticipanttosharetheirpeak(thebestpartoftheday)andtheirpit(theirleastfavoritepartofthedayorsomethingtheywouldliketohavechanged).

HEAD,HEART,FEETThisactivityisawaytoaskwhatwelearned(thehead),whatwefelt(theheart),andwhatwewilldowhenweleave(thefeet).Itcanbeattheendofasessionorattheendofyourprogram.Youcandecidetohavethesequestionsonnewsprintandhaveparticipantswritearesponsetoeach,oryoucangoaroundthegroupandaskparticipantstorespondtooneorallofthequestions.

COLLAGEOFWORDSPostapieceofnewsprintandaskparticipantstowriteonewordthatdescribestheirexperienceforthesessionortheentireprogram.

WHAT?SOWHAT?NOWWHAT?Participantsshouldanswerthefollowing:§ What:Whatsurprisedyou?§ SoWhat:Whatdidyoulearnfromtheexperience?§ NowWhat:Howcantheexperienceapplytootherpartsofyourlife?

PAIRANDSHAREParticipantspairwithoneortwootherstoreflectonaspecifiedtopic.

WHATSTUCKWITHYOU?Asimplequestionthatcanbeansweredonpostitnotes,discussedinpairsorasalargegroup.

JOURNALPROMPTSWritinginresponsetoajournalpromptprovidesanopportunityforindividualreflection.Thepossibilitiesforjournalpromptsarelimitless.Belowareafewsimpleprompts:§ Whatdidtheexperiencemakeyouthinkabout?§ Howdidtheexperiencechangeyourthinkingabout[chooseatopicorissue]?§ Whatdidyoulearnfromthisexperience?§ Whatworked?Whatdidn’twork?§ Whatthoughts(ifany)doesthisexperiencegiveyouaboutissuesinyourlocalcommunity?The

nation?Theworld?§ Howhaveyourassumptionsorstereotypes(aboutpeople,acommunity,theworld,etc.)been

challengedbytheexperience?