Posts Tagged ‘smart on crime’

Inspired by inREACH: Reflections from a Youth Outreach Worker

My experience with the inREACH project began when the Community Mobilization team was formed. I was one of 4 Youth Outreach Workers, working primarily in the Courtland Shelley community as well as in the Paulander neighborhood, both in Kitchener. Our job as Youth Outreach Workers was to work within the neighbourhood to help make young people feel a greater sense of belonging and security within their community.

inREACH fostered a working environment that not only allowed us, but encouraged us to work outside of the box. I’d be lying to say the task was not daunting at first. In my previous experience working as a Youth Worker I had never been given such flexibility and confidence within a position to achieve the desired outcome; an outcome that was not based on the amount of programs ran or number of program participants but the ability to engage youth in their community. We were not given a method to do this; it was easy to see that each of the communities we worked in were uniquely their own. We were introduced to the Spergel Model to use as a foundation and approached our communities in a very strength based, relational approach.

What I appreciated most about working with inREACH, and what I have made a conscious effort to take with me in my work is the time we were given to establish relationships. I spent the first couple months getting to know and understand the community I was working in. I was given the flexibility to do this in many different ways. I spent time outside playing with the kids, going to adult classes or food distributions at the community centre, attending parent council meetings, sharing food with youth, and just hanging out in parks, the malls and parking lots. Any place I thought I might connect to the community I went. inREACH and my working agency, House of Friendship gave me the time to make my visual presence in the community known, and to establish trust and rapport with the youth and their families. Although there were days this time spent within the community did not seem valuable, it was undoubtedly critical to the success of working with the youth in these communities – taking the time to establish a solid relationship allowed for programs, education and training to be successful later in the project.

Through my experience at inREACH I also saw success in an alternative approach to programming. Many community agencies believe that after a certain age youth are not interested in being involved in their community or attending programming at a community centre. I myself have even been guilty of some of those thoughts, however after running strong programs I realize now that it is all in the approach. Creating successful, well attended programs began with the relationship that was formed between the youth and me in the first couple months of working in the community. Through this relationship I was able to discuss with the youth what types of programs they would like. Focusing on their strengths and interest, the youth were involved in the planning and implementation of the programming, right down to the days and times they thought would work best. This created a program that they had interest and ownership in. I also learned to allow the programs to change and be flexible. Programs that initially were successful became less attended and needed to change according to the youth and their needs. Our funding from inREACH allowed us to do many impactful things with the youth outside of their community. Although these things were very important I saw how programming within their community helped the youth to feel a sense of belonging and safety within their neighborhood.

I am pleased to say that the Courtland Shelley Community Centre continues to run youth programs established through inREACH. I have been fortunate enough to remain working at these programs and to sustain relationships with many of the youth I worked with through the project. House of Friendship allows me to continue using approaches that help to enhance my relationship with the youth and run programs that represent their changing needs and wants.

My experience with inREACH has been invaluable. Working with the project has strengthened my skills and competency as a youth worker. I am proud to have been a part of such a unique project that united so many community agencies in collaboration. The inREACH project may have ended, but I take with me inspiration from the youth as well as for the future of youth engagement in the Waterloo Region.

Author: Krista McCann

With an education in Child and Youth Counselling Krista McCann has spent several years working with marginalized children, youth and their families. Krista is dedicated to creating relationships and environments for youth to thrive.

There’ s always more to learn

I agree with the sayings – ‘there’s always more to learn’ and ‘it’s never too late to learn.’

I lived this out when I returned to university for a Masters degree the same year my daughter started university. Luckily she wasn’t too embarrassed to be at school with her mom. My timing turned out to be perfect for another reason as well. During my time in school I had the amazing opportunity to be involved with the research and evaluation of the innovative and highly successful gang prevention project, inREACH. I can guarantee you; I learned something new every day.

An excellent summary of the evaluation report for inREACH highlights a LOT of really important learning and accomplishments as a result of this collective community effort over the past few years. Sharing our story: Lessons learned from the inREACH experience describes how the project was implemented, the young people it served in the treatment and prevention programs, and the many positive impacts of the project on young people, neighbourhoods, organizations and the community as a whole.

Trent’s Trajectory: The dollars & ‘sense’ of crime prevention

Trent’s Trajectory is fictional account of a sixteen year old teenager as he becomes an adult. The infographic, created by Wade Thompson, begins by discussing the risk and resiliency factors Trent faces. The story then branches into two paths. In the first path, Trent does not receive community supports and his risk factors drive the story culminating in a three year prison sentence. In the second path, Trent receives supports from the inREACH project. His resilience factors grow and Trent successfully transitions into adulthood.

Typical stories from the justice system and the inREACH program build Trent’s fictional story. Due to space constraints the ‘current path’ contains less minor crimes than would be expected from a repeat young offender and a few more serious ones. While this slightly changes the story, the overall justice system costs are realistic. It is important to note, while the story is specifically about the inREACH program similar outcomes can be reached for at risk youth in many other prevention programs.

Does this raise any questions for you? What do we do with this information now that inREACH has ended?

Engaging Marginalized Youth: Harnessing experience from the inREACH project

When a community project ends, such as inREACH, the street gang prevention project in Waterloo Region, it doesn’t really completely end. Sure, the office may be closed, the sign taken down, the telephones disconnected and the staff moved on to other jobs, but things have changed in the lives of youth, individuals and our community.

Even after a project ends, it is our responsibility to capture what worked well and what didn’t so we can continue to change ourselves, organizations, services, systems and ultimately our community to better engage & support marginalized youth in positive action and change.

It takes time to capture what’s been learned, how it applies, who continues the work and how we know it’s making a difference. That’s why we’re hosting:

“Engaging Marginalized Youth: Harnessing Experience from the inREACH Project”
Friday April 11, 2014
9am – 11am
Knox Presbyterian Church, 50 Erb Street West, Waterloo
Please Register if you plan to attend

To make the most of our time together that morning, we have prepared an advance blog series featuring 8 individuals who worked closely with inREACH; project staff, neighbourhoods, evaluators and community leaders. Their thoughts and reflections are sure to stimulate your ideas, – don’t hold back! – post comments and questions to the authors as the blogs are posted so we begin to think and talk about the issues now and can jump right in on April 11th.

Think of this blog series as the pre-game show, starting now.

At the event, it will be up to the community to determine and decide what actions we, the collective WE, can and must take to continue some of the work of engaging marginalized youth in our community.

Please comment, share, tweet, Facebook and reblog this series to help spread the word and share the learning.

The new story continues….

As a Friend of Crime Prevention, I believe that the heart of crime prevention is through social and community development…..

As an educator, I was used to being at the front of a group of students or a group of fellow educators. Now being retired, my role as changed, I am continuing on my learning journey, but now as a student or fellow participant in the learning. My learning now is focused on developing a new understanding of community and what needs to be done to build a community of belonging for all residents of the Region of Waterloo.

As a Friend of Crime Prevention, I attended on the morning of February 8th, “What Community Means, a Waterloo Region Community Gathering” at K-W YWCA Mary’s Place Community Room, in downtown Kitchener. This event was led by the New Story Group, the Kitchener-Waterloo Social Planning Council, the Festival of Neighbourhood’s, the Multicultural Cinema Club and the Abrahamic Peace Builders.

The keynote speaker was Derek Alton, of the 1000 Conversations project. 1000 Conversations is a project of Tamarack, a charity that develops and supports learning communities that help people to collaborate, co-generate knowledge and achieve collective impact on complex community issues. The deep hope of Tamarack is to end poverty in Canada.

The pilot phase of the 1000 Conversation campaign started in Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo, Halton and Hamilton, and the second phase Tamarack is looking to partner with 10 new local hosts across Canada who are interested in bringing this campaign to their communities.

Some of my key learnings from this Community Gathering dealt with:

• How technology is changing how we approach community
• The shifting expectations of Community – how the experience of seniors and youth compare
• The Dark Sides of Community

The discussion on “The Dark Sides of Community” for me was especially enlightening, as I have been focusing much of my efforts with the inclusion work of the City of Kitchener Safe and Healthy Community Advisory Committee on building bridges to inclusion in our community. The “Dark Sides of Community” refers to the feeling of individuals being left out of their community because “they did not fit the mold” or that they could not be their “true selves”, so because of this, community can be experienced as a very judgemental and exclusive place for some. But, clear boundaries can preserve the integrity of a group, so no community can be all things for all people. The key learning here is that community is complicated and messy, and that it is important to not ignore this but rather to seek to understand it.

My view of community is evolving, in my previous blog post, I talked about the New Story Group and their efforts to write a new story about belonging and community. Community for me is many things. For thirty years as an educator my community was very focused on my work and family. Now that I am retired I have been expanding my horizons. My work community is still part of my world, but not the main part. Community is many things, my family, my poker group, my circle of friends, the people at the various places and organizations that I am now volunteering at. Community can be anywhere, and can involve anyone, the only thing is some connection. Connections, the web that builds is what links community together for me. I am amazed at the connections that I see when I do something in my community. It is by leveraging these connections that we can work together to improve our community and make it a place where everyone feels that they belong.

I do believe that many small actions will add up to a large action on the road to building a community of belonging. It can be as simple as acknowledging the presence of a homeless person in downtown Kitchener, they are part of our community, a friendly smile goes a long way in making a person feel like they belong. In less than two months since my last blog post, I have become a member at large on the Forest Heights Community Association Board of Directors, with the desire to continue writing a new story of belonging in my community.

I challenge you to do something to make our community a community of belonging, smile at a stranger, volunteer somewhere in your community, it will make a difference, it will connect you!

Author: Doug McKlusky was born in Ottawa but is a long time resident of Waterloo Region including his university days. Doug recently retired from 30 years with the Waterloo Region District School Board. Doug was co-chair of the inREACH Street Gang Prevention Project until it closed in December 2013. But in his newly retired days, time has very quickly filled with important work such as Out of the Cold, Nutrition for Learning, Forest Heights Community Association and the Safe & Healthy Community Advisory Committee for the City of Kitchener. And, wisely, Doug connects all his work to being an all-around ambassador for Friends of Crime Prevention – it really is about connection.

Doug McKlusky‘s writing reflects his own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views or official positions of the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council.

How I became a Friend of Crime Prevention… In 15 Easy Steps!

The Friends of Crime Prevention network is a space for active members of the community to come together and discuss their ideas of crime prevention. The network aims to bridge individuals and organizations in the common goal of increasing social justice and action for a safe community in which we all live.

This may look great on paper but we really have to ask ourselves: Do these network meetings actually make a difference? Do people really contact one-to-one outside of the meeting rooms? Can talking actually make a difference? Is it more than just the free food, drinks, and give-aways!?

I have personally had the pleasure of becoming part of this network of proactive individuals and it has opened up a new world of action and community engagement! These meetings helped my career, allowed me to form a stronger professional network, and brought a number of important issues to my attention. Here is how I became involved as a Friend of Crime Prevention:

1. Student attends the Wilfrid Laurier Masters of Social Work program
2. Student meets professor
3. Professor recommends Friends of Crime Prevention meeting
4. Student attends meeting and mentions interest in preventing sexual violence
5. Student is introduced to MAASV (Male Allies Against Sexual Violence) Public Education Facilitator. Meeting ends
6. Student contacts MAASV facilitator for a meeting
7. Student and facilitator host MAASV seminar at Laurier Faculty of Social Work
8. Student begins to attend MAASV meetings
9. Student receives placement with the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
10. Student writes quiz  for intimate partner violence (IPV), among many other worthwhile projects
11. Student invited to IPV meeting at Conestoga College
12. Student forms network with college and MAASV
13. Student’s resume is very happy
14. Student writes about his path to becoming a Friend.
15. Reader reads in astonishment and attends next Friends of Crime Prevention meeting!

Are you a Friend of Crime Prevention? Do you have a story to tell about how you got involved in crime prevention through social development? Add your story in the comments below.

Smart on Crime in the U.S. of A.

When United States Attorney General Eric Holder made gave his “Smart on Crime” remarks to the American Bar Association’s Annual Convention in San Francisco on August 12, 2013, it “launched a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system in order to identify reforms that would ensure federal laws are enforced more fairly and—in an era of reduced budgets—more efficiently”.

If you’ve been following the ‘smart on crime’ news from the United States since then, it appears they are leaving few stones unturned. In the case of mandatory minimum sentencing for drug offenses, there seems to be a lot of evidenced-based research to support their justice reform directions.

As an example, take a look at these Federal Bureau of Prisons infographic charts in a recent Huffington Post article on the impact of prison overcrowding:

U.S. Prison Population As Of Jan. 25, 2014

Data is limited due to the availability of offense-specific information.

See the full article here. 

The Community Weighs in on the Root Causes of Crime: Part Two

In the first part of our follow up to the Snapshot on Crime series, we shared some themes and commonalities we found in the informative, thought-provoking responses of community residents and leaders to the report – A Snapshot in Time: The Root Causes of Crime in Waterloo Region. Each contributor reflected on local data in the report concerning one social, community or economic circumstance associated with increases or decreases in crime. We shared powerful quotes from contributors illustrating the importance of individual actions, and the need for transformative changes, like changes in attitudes, in order to address the root causes of crime. There was so much to share, we couldn’t fit them all in to one blog post. Read on….

Multiple Interconnected Roots Require Holistic Approaches

The connections between social, economic and community circumstances and crime are complex. There are often multiple circumstances that adversely impact people and communities requiring coordinated, holistic responses to the interconnected roots of crime and victimization.

For example, Jill Stoddart explains that children in care of child welfare “often come from disadvantaged families and have been subjected to maltreatment and neglect” and thus “are often at higher risk of involvement in the youth justice system, homelessness, substance abuse” and other problems.

While being young and male is associated with an increased risk of crime and victimization,  Rohan Thompson from the inREACH gang prevention project says “the vast majority of youth crime is being committed by a small number of young offenders.” Further, these youth “have lived and been exposed to risks most of their young life, so participation in a gang is just the symptom of deeper more complex issues…” requiring “a holistic long term approach.”

Since “length of involvement in schooling significantly impacts participation in criminal activity,” school boards go to “great lengths” to decrease the number of residents without a high school education. David DeSantis gives examples of Catholic school board initiatives such as the “Supervised Alternative Learning programs [that] allow students to work full-time, get mental health supports, volunteer hours and accumulate credits.”

Challenging the way root causes are framed

Some writers questioned or re-framed the indicators defined as root causes in the report.

Julie Philips for example, questioned the association of higher crime rates with higher proportions of single parent headed households.

“…children and youth from fragmented households are perhaps just as likely to commit crime as lone-parent offspring.  What do I mean by fragmented? A two parent family, where the parents… at the end of the day are too tired, burned out and stressed, leaving little time or energy to actively engage their children. “

Innovative responses

Waterloo Region’s reputation as a social and economic innovator was clearly demonstrated by our community’s innovative responses to root causes.

Sue Klassen tells how “restorative justice reduces fear of crime.”

“She [victim] learned that Brianna was not the monster that she had imagined her to be, but a troubled young woman who had been the past victim of rape and abuse, trying to turn her life around. Carol’s fear was transformed.”

Aaron Stauch says that although unemployment rates are improving, this “masks some concerning trends for specific segments of our workforce. Unemployment for youth, new Canadians…and older workers has remained high.” “..There are many local organizations implementing innovative ways of addressing these employment challenges.”

Moving Upstream

Many writers emphasized the critical need to focus more attention on preventing problems from occurring in the first place.

Amy Romagnoli explains that many community organizations “place great value on early child development as an up-stream approach to preventing negative child outcomes…Programs that promote and offer early learning opportunities need to be prioritized, implemented and given a chance to prove their value in the long term.”

So… where does all this leave us?

First, the good news, crime rates have been steadily falling in Waterloo Region and the Snap Shot in Time report shows Waterloo Region is committed to paying attention to the root cause of crime. “A continued diligent effort to monitor and intervene in the root causes of crime is a powerful tool for ensuring that this trend can continue into the future.”

The overall picture, as illustrated in the report, for Waterloo Region is mixed. Some statistics are positive, such as higher rates of social capital compared to Ontario or Canada. In some areas, such as the percentage of people without a high school education, we are doing about the same. Yet in other areas, like some early childhood indicators, we are falling behind. The picture is incomplete though as some key indicators, such as alcohol consumption and recreational substance use cannot be tracked due to lack of reliable data.

Community residents and leaders described the important work being done in our community to address the root causes of crime and victimization and to build a safe and healthy community for everyone. They shared their insights, stories, and calls for action. One of the important messages is that everyone can make a difference – so join us!

What more do we need to do? Considering all the good efforts already under way, are you satisfied with the work of the community or would you like to do more? Is there a particular area in which you would like to see our community put more collective and concentrated effort?

Essentially…. Where do we go from here? Speak up community, you’re great at this! And you’re great at making things happen too.

Where would you like to get started?

The Community Weighs in on the Root Causes of Crime: Change and Action

How do we get at the root causes of crime and prevent it from happening in the first place?

This isn’t a direct, straight answer, but, the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council believes part of the solution is to monitor the root causes of crime over time. Then we, as a community, can better understand and address the social, community and economic conditions associated with crime and victimization. Check out the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council’s report – A Snapshot in Time: The Root Causes of Crime in Waterloo Region to find out how we are doing in early childhood development, employment, community trust and other important indicators.

In the months following the report’s release, community residents, leaders and experts wrote blogs responses to share stories, insights and examples of how our community is responding to the root causes of crime outlined in the report. When we read all the fantastic community responses together like a book, we started to notice some themes and commonalities.

Individual actions matter

Many blogs responses focused on the importance of individual actions in building a safe and healthy community. Volunteering, owning a home and having a stake in a healthy neighbourhood or simple acts of noticing  instead of “pretend(ing) to be an island” all make a positive difference .

Waterloo City Councillor, Karen Scian, tells a moving story of her encounter with a ‘squeegee kid’ at a red light as a way of illustrating how social capital (positive connections between people) is something we can all build and that protects against crime.

 “His green eyes instantly reminded me of [my son] Peter. What if? …I…called him over…We chatted…and [I] gave him paper money. I gave him my business card. I asked him to call his mom…He thanked me again and told me that he was going to get something to eat and that he would call his mom…I had to hope.”

Higher levels of home ownership also serve as a protective factor against crime. Local realtor Keith Marshall is optimistic since “we are trending well in Kitchener-Waterloo. Crime is down. Homeownership is up. Neighbourhoods that were considered unsafe and decaying fifteen years ago are transforming into sought after and vibrant places to live.”

Calls for transformative changes to address root causes

Many contributors spoke passionately of the need for deep structural changes in our communities and systems in order to transform the social and economic conditions that contribute to crime and victimization.

In reflecting on the “deplorable” rates of violence against women and the need for a larger shelter in Waterloo Region in recent years, Mary Zilney asks:

“Why doesn’t our government create a system whereby the women and children remain in the family home and the abuser is removed? …Instead of building bigger shelters, we need to turn our minds to how we collaboratively eradicate violence against women.”

Part of the solution lies in changing attitudes and awareness

Many contributors agreed that part of the societal transformation required to address the root causes of crime and build healthy communities is changing attitudes so that all people are valued and treated with respect and understanding.

Sara Casselman writes about an innovative program to reduce incidences of sexual assault that works “with men in positions to influence male youth.” This program “encourages young men to treat women with fairness, equality and respect and to stand up and speak out on gendered violence.”

Sheri Cartwright, a community volunteer, reflects on the connection between homelessness and the increase in victimization and minor crimes among those who are without a home:

“when we provide those in need with stable housing we give the opportunity to live with dignity, reduce crime, reduce addiction and give the opportunity for better success. It is a win, win situation…We need to put as much effort into creating awareness and fundraising for this as we do when collecting food and socks.”

According to Mary MacKeigan who writes about the income of low income families and individuals:

“the root of all root causes…is the stigmatization of people living in poverty. Societal attitudes / values impact our political voting choices and influence policy decisions…. if enough of us TRULY believed that everyone was a valuable member of society, we’d have much better policies in place that reflect that belief.”

Thank you to the community contributors for sharing these insights and calls to action. There’s more to come. Tune in to the next blog for part two of The Community Weighs in on the Root Causes of Crime. We’ll review the some more themes and provide additional reflections and food for thought.

Friends of Crime Prevention – Why Join?

Who knew I’d be joining the Friends of Crime Prevention in my retirement years?  Well, it has to be destiny, no one could have told me this would be in my plans, but what a blessing.

Let me back it up a bit for you, to Nov. 3, 2011 when my son Daniel, then 28, went missing. Once we learned where his vehicle was found (Temagami backcountry, Red Squirrel Road), we at least know where he potentially was and that there was no evidence of foul play or crime. But, the need to file a local missing persons report and then have another police force take over the search (OPP, Temiskaming), we were confronted with a lot of new learning about police procedures and, most importantly, about the gap in support services for families with missing loved ones, particularly when there is no evidence of crime.

Daniel is still missing today.

Fast forward to December 2013 when I joined Friends of Crime Prevention. In an effort to find meaning in the uncertainty of my son missing for over 2 years, I reached out to agencies in our community to try and get a network started to help support families like mine. Having known Christine Sadeler at the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council when I worked at the Region of Waterloo and knew about their close workings with the community, I reached out to her to share my need. I wanted to spread the message about missing persons so we could create a network that would to help raise awareness and fill a gap I see in our community.

I attended the Friends of Crime Prevention event on January. 9, 2014 and was pleased with the number of representatives from the community, as board members, professionals and friends. This reinforced that my decision to become a Friend of Crime Prevention was indeed a good one. Not only was it informative, but it gave me a much better sense of the diversity of the group and the many facets of crime prevention from a community perspective. A bonus was getting a tour of the new WRPS North Division  Station, where the meeting was held.

My hope is that not only do I have the opportunity to become part of a group with many facets of crime prevention as their objective, but also to get others engaged in making it a better place for those who may be impacted by a missing loved one. I thank Friends of Crime Prevention for giving our community this opportunity to participate and play as active a role as we can give.

In an effort to do my part as a Friend of Crime Prevention and raising awareness about what it’s like for families with missing loved ones, I want to point you toward a very timely media series in the Waterloo Region Record. Anyone who feels they can help play a role in providing support services for the families with missing loved ones, please contact me, Maureen Trask.

Media Series: MISSING in Waterloo Region

In collaboration with Waterloo Regional Police Service and the Waterloo Region Record, families with missing loved ones are currently sharing their stories, challenges and issues. Greg Mercer is the reporter writing this series and is supported by Richard Dorling from WRPS who is working with the missing cases and the families concerned. We are very grateful for their amazing support and assistance.

Check the Saturday paper or online for ‘MISSING’ articles, giving a better awareness and understanding of what it’s like for families with a missing loved one.

Initial Article: November 9, 2013: Families of missing live in limbo
Week 1: January 18, 2014: Families of missing push for change, missing Clifford Scruton 

• Related Story: Where is Clifford Scruton

Week 2: January 24, 2014: I know someone knows something, missing David MacDermott

Week 3: February 1, 2014: You can cry buckets, but you don’t stop looking, ever

Week 4: February 8, 2014: Outside prison, he couldn’t escape his drug debt

Week 5: February 15, 2014: Man’s disappearance followed by postcards

     Febrary 15, 2014: New missing persons’ DNA database celebrated

Week 6: February 22, 2014: ‘Where did they go?’: Officer determined to pursue missing persons cold cases

Missing Persons Information:

• WRPS Missing Persons  
• WRPS Missing Homicide Investigations
• National Centre for Missing Persons and Unidentified Remains (NCMPUR), Canada’s Missing

Author: Maureen Trask is a long time resident of Waterloo Region and recently retired from the Region of Waterloo.