Morgan Hill PD takes the Time
to Invest in their City’s Youth
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By Chuck Flagg, V.I.P. Morgan Hill PD
Morgan Hill is a city of approximately 40,000 residents located about
20 miles south of San Jose, towards the far end of Silicon Valley.
Its police department is approved for 36 sworn officers,
6 paid reserve officers, and 20 non-sworn support positions.
Officer Sara Alanis talks with
local high school students at
their school campus.
T
he department is committed to better serving its community
and has adopted a strategic plan in order to do so. During
his first year on the job, Police Chief David Swing met with
students at the local high schools and asked, “How can the
police and youth work to improve our relationship?” From these
meetings one central theme emerged, create more opportunities
for positive encounters. The department worked in collaboration
with the Morgan Hill Unified School District to establish three
key programs supporting two of the strategic plan’s outcomes:
Increase trust and confidence in the police department and Increase
feelings of safety of the residents.
Youth Mentoring Through Sports
One of the successful collaborations is an after-school
program for some 80 at-risk middle school students (7th and
8th graders). Organized by Morgan Hill Youth Sports Alliance
President Jeff Dixon, students participate twice a week during
the seven week long season. Activities included co-ed sports
[
Chief David Swing and Captain Jerry
Neumayer chat with a young Morgan
Hill resident during National Night Out.
such as soccer, flag football, kickball, dodge ball, and inner tube
water polo.
Aimed at youth who might not be able to find a connection
to sports through traditional routes, the program is supported by
a variety of agencies: Morgan Hill Police Department (through
coaching and mentoring), Recreation and Community Services
Division (through access to the city’s indoor and outdoor athletic
facilities), and the School District (through selecting students,
providing transportation and high school student coaches).
Morgan Hill School Board Trustee Claudia Rossi praises
the program, pointing out that parents usually are not home to
supervise their children immediately after school and this 3:30 to
5:30 p.m. activity keeps students positively engaged during this
crucial part of the day.
“This was an opportunity for students to perhaps have a first
positive encounter with the police. The mentoring and encouragement received from the officers may help these students to avoid
some bad choices later in their lives.”
SPRING 2014 | California Police Chief
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