Gate -Organization- Objective

OBJECTIVES OF THE GATE PROGRAM

Objective #1

TO VALUE DECISIONS THEY MAKE, AND TO UNDERSTAND THE DANGERS OF JOINING A GANG.

            Children in the 5th through 8th grade level become increasingly more exposed to gang recruitment.  Gangs target these age levels because they know how impressionable these grade level youths are.  Gangs realize that children are impressionable and experimental at this level.  Gangs and its members will use peer pressure to get members to commit crimes or use drugs either for the gang or some of its membership.  G.A.T.E.’s goals are to teach positive decision-making skills, to reinforce that the decisions that they make can affect their lives in the future and to instill the tools that are required to make good decisions. G.A.T.E. will show how gangs directly affect the adolescent development and patterns of gang crimes that can stem from involvement in a gang. In addition, the program touches on the gang problems in society, at schools and teens in general.

 Objective #2

TO RESPECT LAWS AND RULES PROHIBITING GANGS

            In the program children learn to respect rules and laws as the embodiment of social values and as tools for protecting individuals and society.  It provides specific instruction about laws concerning gangs. Youths will learn about local codes, and laws regulating gangs, alcohol, and drugs.  Some topics would focus on how the society would function without laws and rules, how our behavior would be, and why it is wrong to join a gang and commit crimes for the gang.

Objective # 3

TO EDUCATE ABOUT THE DANGERS OF DRUGS AND REMAINING DRUG FREE

            The goal of the GATE program is to promote a whole life experience, promoting a healthy life style without using drugs.  The GATE program provides lessons, in dealing with drugs, legal and illegal and the abuse that occurs around those drugs.  The goal is to promote a healthy attitude, which a student will want to, and desire to stay drug free.  The GATE program uses a variety of learned experiences as well as in class exercises, which take them beyond just saying “No”, but in addition leading by example. The goal is to promote a drug free environment wherever the student is.

Objective #4

TO RECOGNIZE AND RESIST PRESSURES OF GANGS

            Social influences play a key role in encouraging children to join gangs.  Pressures to join gangs come from internal sources, such as a child’s desire to feel included in a group or to demonstrate independence and external influences, such as the opinions and examples of friends, older children, and adults, and the medial messages bombarding them daily.  Kids must learn to identify these pressures.  They must learn how to counteract messages to join gangs and gain practice in saying “NO”.  The education program emphasizes influences on behavior, responsible decision making, and techniques for resisting peer pressures to join and become a gang member.

            Peers, teachers, parents, etc., mold our behavior. The direct reasons people do not join gangs, situations where gang members can easily abuse and use drugs as well as who will introduce you to drugs, alcohol, and violence will be discussed.  Ways to say “NO” and resistance skills needed to survive in this culture of ours will also be taught.  Activities also include films and tapes, role-playing, group and individual projects and poster contests. Creativity is encouraged during this phase as well. 

Objective #5

TO PROMOTE ACTIVITIES THAT REINFORCE THE POSITIVE, GANG FREE ELEMENTS OF STUDENT LIFE.

            School, community, family and personal activities that provide the youth opportunities to have fun without joining a gang and to contribute to the community and themselves to build momentum for peer pressure not to join a gang.  These activities also nurture positive examples by giving older students opportunities for leadership related to gang prevention.

            Sports, clubs, personal activities, Karate, music, and any other Alternatives to Join Gangs.  A strong commitment to school, family, peers and relations with police officers within the local community and the village of Niles.

            G.A.T.E. Gang Awareness Training Education is a program taught to local school children by our local Police Department members who bring a vast background of knowledge and practical “street” experience.  GATE can cater the program to fit the needs of the community and can alter or change the program and its content readily.  This allows us to provide different contact and subject matter to target particular issues and particular schools that have students from various backgrounds and perhaps behavioral problems.  Our very flexible program can be geared towards the corporate community in our Village/town and can be implemented in PTA groups, or other interest groups, such as Scouts, etc.  The GATE program teaches the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grade students supplementing other prevention based program.   With this exposure, the youth gets to know and recognize the program’s officers and each year maintains that bond to the other officer and the department.   Largely most communities have minor gang problems, and henceforth we can insert other areas of concern into our program year when it is updated and new materials and issues come upon us.  We touch on crime, drugs, decision-making, public

safety and other issues important to the younger set.  With any program of this nature, the long-term results cannot be measured, but our constant devotion to the youth is essential.  We have taken the police officer out of the shell of the squad car and placed the Police Officer in the schools, where he can go one-on-one in class with the kids, and one-on-one at the basketball hoop with the students as well.  We encourage the officer’s to lunch with the students and participate in gym classes and recess as well, in another effort to bond with the students, and thus far, it has been very positive.  The “In Touch” approach to students is also extended by offering them access to the officers, while on normal Police duties, via a hotline to the station, should the student wish to speak to the officer outside the school setting.

Objective #6

TO PROMOTE THE REDUCTION OF GUN VIOLENCE AND THE PROLIFERATION OF ACTS OF VIOLENCE COMMITTED WITH WEAPONS.

            The use of firearms by gang members is a fact reported almost daily in the news.  As a result, hundreds of innocent persons have been hurt, cripple or killed by gang members using firearms.  G.A.T.E.’s objective is to reduce the risk of violence perpetrated by firearms, and to educate youths on the dangers of firearms, and what the results of carrying and using firearms can be.

Objective #7

TO ADDRESS THE DANGERS SURROUNDING SCHOOL RELATED VIOLENCE

            In the last several years school related violence has reached into the homes of parents and children across America.  Students will be taught about bullying, peer mediation, conflict resolution, tolerance and cultural sensitivity to better get a grasp and understanding for their fellow students.  The goal is too overt any acts such as those that occurred in 1999 in Littleton Colorado.