Diamond Jordan

October 27, 2016

Erin Malcolm & Stacy Joslin

Senior Seminar

Individuals making a positive impact

Positive communication between police and students can build a bridge and start a

positive conversation to begin to try to understand and to begin to listen to one another. Doing

so, in a relaxed environment can prove to be important for the groups to communicate well and

begin healing. Improving positive communication between police and students by having them

interact in relaxed situations can help students to see officers as human, which both increases

student respect and decreases student anxiety. For a former seniors project, a police officer went

to Blackstone Academys first field day in 2015; this was a positive encounter because students

treated him like he was a friend- he was just another guy. They were able to see him outside of

uniform, which made the kids understand police officers are people too and they are like

everyone else. Also in a neighborhood setting in Gainsville, Florida, a police officer was called

to a scene by a complaint about teenagers being loud and playing basketball in the street. The

officer was respectful and approached the kids in a friendly manner. He began to play basketball

with them and ended the fun by stating I will be back tomorrow with back up, (Karimi). The

next day the officer went back with some fellow officers and Shaquil ONeil as his back up. The

kids were thrilled and played a game of basketball with the officers and Shaq. Realizing the
officer kept his word and went back to play with the kids, was very important and is something

they will never forget. This allowed the kids in both situations on both days to relate to the

officers as a person; on a personal level. It is easier to respect their point of view rather than

seeing them as someone who doesnt care. These relationships help build trust and a positive

relationship, which makes interactions less stressful.

If police take steps to be involved in the community in positive ways, then the

community will react and create a better environment for everyone. CBS Boston reported that

police in Walpole, Massachusetts were acting on a new initiative to give out tickets to children

for the kids behaving well (Marrill). The kids were able to see that by being naturally good, they

were rewarded by the police department. For example, two kids looked both ways and held their

mothers hands before crossing the street. Another child received a good ticket for wearing his

helmet as he rode his bike. Each kid was presented with a good ticket with their name on it, the

officers name, along with a gift card for free ice cream at the popular neighborhood ice cream

shop. This helped the kids to realize that policemen arent only there to enforce the law; they can

also be there for good reasons. By these circumstances occurring, the positive relationship

between police and students start at a young age and can be helpful because students will

understand that police are also there for positive re-enforcement. Kids who see these types of

interactions, feel better around police and thrive to do the right thing more often.