The Importance of Kops and Kids Program - Research Paper Example

Youth Crime Prevention Program Crime is present in every society and affects the younger population of the society to a destructive extent. Youth crime prevention programs are a solution to handle the increasing rate of crime in any region. These programs must be effective and should work for the benefit of the young population as the future of a society is based on the young population. Many programs are started in various regions for preventing crime or informing young masses about the damaging effects of crime (Elliott, 1998). One of such programs is Kops n Kids program, which is designed for the facilitation of youth. This paper will discuss the youth crime prevention program named as Kops n Kids program by critically analyzing the program in depth. Kops n kids program is a program against violence and crime. Violence and crime are prevalent in all societies and young people get affected the most due to which, they must be given training for crime prevention. Mendel (2000) claims that “the road to violence begins in childhood”, which is exactly true as young people are prone to dangers more easily. This is the reason as to why crime prevention programs should be there for the youth. Young people should be given a chance to express their views on crime prevention strategies. The youth must be able to analyze adults such as law enforcement personnel as role models and should be having an active communication link with them. A society needs everyone to make it better whether the participants are young or adult. Involvement of police personnel is must to make the crime prevention programs successfully implementable (Elliott, 1998). Therefore, the Kops n Kids program involves law enforcement professionals to make the program successful. Kops and kids program can be described as a program that is for the purpose of providing mentors for the young people so that they can gain awareness about the crime and right strategies to control crime. According to the website VolunteerMatch.com (2011), Kops n kids program deals with the comprehensibility of drugs, alcohol and gang making and after gaining understanding, various strategies for prevention of these crimes are considered. The age group of involved young population ranges from nine to thirteen years. The police and other law enforcement officials are encouraged to be a volunteer for the youth. They can be mentors and can prove as a role model for the youth. The mentors work as instructors who educate the young participants of the program about the hazards of becoming engaged in criminal activities such as drug and alcohol usage and becoming a part of gang for doing other criminal or illegal activities (VolunteerMatch.com, 2011). In Kops n Kids program, young participants are not only involved in discussions but they are also encouraged to take part in sport events. Efforts are done towards facilitating the youth towards personality building as the young participants are taught to work as a team and keep their own respect among many others (VolunteerMatch.com, 2011). These strategies are for the betterment of young population and encourage them to be a better citizen of the country. The youth gain the strength to reject any wrong steps moving towards them. They are supported to become strong individuals so that they can be able to handle any drug, alcohol or gang related issue. Young people can stay away from drug or alcohol dependence and can lead a life that is free from hostility and brutality. They can opt for the right and shun what is wrong and this is the motive of the program (VolunteerMatch.com, 2011). Kops n kids program is designed for character and personality building of young population. They are provided with mentors that are eligible to be a role model for the young people involved in the program. The mentors can work towards crime prevention and can take essential and supportive step towards enabling the young people to become such citizens that are supportive and facilitating for the whole society. According to Bluemer (1999), “most of the activities are based on character building and self-esteem”, which shows that young people have to be involved in such activities that are for their own welfare. Law enforcement officials also feel that Kops n Kids program enable them to reach children and educate them with knowledge that is practically understood and considered. The young people involved in the program are given opportunities to learn about crime and its prevention through physical and psychological activities. They are given a chance to spend time with an officer as Bluemer (1999) tells, “the program requires that each officer and child spend time together on a regular basis, creating their own agendas”. The participants have liberty in selecting and setting what is appropriate according to their own mindset as they have their own agendas. The starters and organizers of the program inform that law enforcement professionals show interest in participating in the program and have volunteered for the program. The categorization of a law enforcement official as a role model for the youth is quite challenging for the professionals but for a combined benefit, they showed readiness. Due to Kops and Kids program, the law enforcement officials get a chance to intercommunicate with youth. This communication linkage is appreciated by the law enforcement officials as to understand and correct the society as a whole, it is essential to communicate with the youth of the society. As per the website Sterlingcolo.com (2011), “The primary purpose of the program is to provide an atmosphere which builds relationships with the youth of our community, from the preschool age through high school. Through these relationships, the officer(s) can be a positive influence by providing education and social interaction with the student.” Kops n kids program is for the provision of an environment due to which, the officers can interact freely with the young participants as relationship building is a property of the program and enables the youth as well as the officers to deliver their ideas and views to one another to find solutions for crime related problems in an atmosphere that is friendly and accommodative. In addition, the law enforcement officials can leave a constructive impression on the young students as their gained pragmatic experience in life and have greater awareness of crime and criminals. The officers are not only asked to educate the students about crime and crime prevention but they also take part in students’ academic performance and physical exercises and sporting events. These kinds of attitudes and performances prove helpful in building relationships that are more strong and communicative. The students are given lessons on driving, drinking and gang creation, all of which are associated with crime and wrongdoing (Sterlingcolo.com, 2011). The efficacy of the program is only known when the youth is targeted in their schools. It is the schooling age when children are more prone to dangers pertaining to criminal activities. Marcia R. Chaiken (1998) informs in her article, “Kids, Cops and Communities” that “Schools too play a major role in increasing or decreasing the probability that a child will become seriously delinquent or a victim of violence.” (pg. 2). The Kops n Kids program targets students of schools as students of schools face major problems concerning drug usage, alcoholism and gang creation. They are of young age and face troubles as how to shun the problems related to these issues. In Kops n Kids program, youth is facilitated to get in touch with professionals of law enforcement agencies due to which, they gain real time awareness of original situation of crime and the procedures to prevent crime. Therefore, it is quite right that youth crime prevention programs should be there for controlling the increasing rate of crime and to teach the youth about the dangers associated with involvement in crime such as drug usage, drinking and gang making. The youth who is targeted by authorities for successful completion of program is less than eighteenth years of age and should gain awareness of prevention of crime to become healthy citizens with a healthy character. The students are able to gain healthy habits and correct knowledge of crime and crime prevention strategies by means of their mentors who are law enforcement professionals working as volunteers for the success of the program. Kops n Kids program is fruitful for youth as it helps them to gain a good character and self-esteem as the participants who work as mentors work towards character building and self-esteem of the youth. They also get involved in various physical activities such as sports due to which, healthy habits become a part of young students’ personality. Mentors work as role models for the youth. Overall, Kops and Kids is a good program under the category of youth crime prevention program. References Bluemer, Chris. (October, 1999). Kops-n-kids. SunSentinel.com. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 from http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1999-10-03/news/9909300576_1_police-officer-kids-dozen-officers Chaiken, Marcia R. (1998). Kids, COPS, and Communities. New York: National Institute of Justice, The Carnegie Corporation of New York. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 from http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles/169599.pdf Elliott, Delbert S. (1998). Prevention Programs That Work For Youth: Violence Prevention. University of Colorado, Boulder: Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 from http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/publications/papers/CSPV-012.pdf Mendel, Richard A. (May, 2000). What works in the prevention of youth crime? Eye-Online 16. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 from http://www.cyc-net.org/cyc-online/cycol-0500-mendler.html Sterlingcolo.com. (2011). Kops ‘N Kids. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 http://www.sterlingcolo.com/?page_id=180 VolunteerMatch.com. (2011). Kops-N-Kids. Retrieved on June 19, 2011 from http://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org52652.jsp Read More