Quincy looking at gang resistance program

QUINCY - Quincy is examining an education program aimed at preventing children from joining gangs.

The city council agreed to supply a police officer and send him to training for the Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT) program. The program is aimed at elementary and middle school students in hopes to prevent them from joining gangs.

The program is supported by the Bureau of Justice Administration, and is intended to provide skills to students, helping them to avoid delinquent behavior and using violence to solve problems, according to information on the program.

"It's really hard to do a lot with the people who are already involved (with gangs,)" Mayor Jim Hemberry said. "If we can steer our younger population away from gangs through education, through our after school programs, through summer programs, then at least we have a fighting chance at making a difference."

The idea came from the Public Safety Commission, comparing it to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, Hemberry said. After seeing a presentation on the program, the commission recommended the city start the program in its schools.

"What that would mean for the city is, we'd have to hire an additional officer," he said. "The person that does the GREAT program, they're not going to have to do this 40 hours a week, but you can't expect to take somebody off of patrol to do this program because while they're teaching ... you can't call them away."

Hemberry explained an officer is interested in running the program, and the city would likely need to hire an officer to replace the one running the program.

"There is sort of a sense of urgency, but not," he said. "If we're going to do this, I would like to see us do it for the upcoming school year, and there is a training in Portland in August."

Hemberry wanted to make sure the city secured a place for the August training, he said. The lodging and training are paid by the federal government.

"They also pay for all the training materials for the stuff that's done in the schools," he said. "If you want to buy things like T-shirts and all that other stuff that's extra, but all the handbooks and the certificates and those things are provided by the GREAT program."

Councilmember Jose Saldana said the program doesn't sound too bad, but he wondered if the city had a way to simply send the officer to the training without implementing the program in the school.

"Regardless of whether this program is in place or not, that training should be done anyway and have that officer go to the classroom once and a while," he said. "I think that could be doable without hiring another officer."

Hemberry didn't agree, saying if the program was put in place it would require the city to hire an additional officer.

"I would assume that if we take a slot, they expect us to run the program," he said.

Gus Winter, Quincy School District's security director, said if the city pursued the program, they needed to institute the program for at least a year.

Councilmember Paul Worley questioned the cost of hiring an additional officer.

"It seems to me that the school district can buy their own cop, rather than us buying a cop and giving it to the school," he said.

Hemberry said they would need to see how much time it took to teach the classes, and then the police department could decide what it wanted the officer to do the rest of the time.

"One of the benefits of this program is not only the education side of it, but the ability to get our police officers into the school and get that one-on-one, or build that community support," Hemberry said. "Then that would give us that officer all summer, which are basically our busiest months. We would still have a lot of use of that person."

Police Chief Richard Ackerman said he'd get eight hours of work for eight hours of pay.

"It's almost a full time commitment to get started," he said. "Then you tailor how many hours per week roughly is dedicated to the GREAT program. There is preparation time. There is actual presentation time. Then there is travel time back and forth. Outside of that time frame, then they become mine if you will."

Councilmember Scott Lybbert loved the idea of the program, pointing out the children will be introduced to police officers in a controlled atmosphere.

Hemberry said the school board would need to agree to the program, and figure out how to fit it into the curriculum.

The council agreed to try the program.