Creating opportunities through youth engagement

When people think of conflict resolution, many times the focus is on adults and their process of solving disagreements, but conflict doesn’t just impact adults. This is why the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) and Community Relations have made an intentional effort to develop youth programs that provide tools for conflict resolution, mediation, active listening and effective communication.

Community Relations and CMPD recognize the importance of reaching the youth at an early age and using peer groups to effect change. There are programs for many levels of education, but middle school is a critical time to reach students. Community Relations’ community coordinators developed a weekly Peer Club program for students in 6th — 9th grades and is currently in eight schools. Students are selected by school counselors who have identified that they have good leadership potential but need a small push in the right direction.

Middle school students are at an age where they have a little more freedom and are in a transition from elementary to high school. At this age, they are more inquisitive and eager to explore. The peer clubs take field trips to places like the Police & Fire Training Academy or community partners come in to talk about career options.

One of the most important benefits of the program is that it provides a space to have transparent conversation, gives students a voice and allows city staff to build strong relationship with the youth in the community.

Through the program, the students learn about conflict resolution using real life examples of what’s happening in the community. They also learn about active listening and how conflict isn’t always bad. As the students learn more about their own conflict resolution styles, they are encouraged to look internally which helps them become better equipped to handle conflict effectively.

In partnership with Community Relations, CMPD occasionally joins the peer group discussions to talk about their roles and how they can positively interact with each other. By interacting with a CMPD officer in a non-confrontational situation, students can utilize the learned conflict awareness skills and have rich, engaging conversations.

The Peer Club program has had significant impact on the students and the community coordinators have become mentors to them.

With the success of the program, Community Relations and CMPD believe it is important to continue engaging with the students during the summer months. One of those ways to do this is through a summer program called QUEST. The goal of the program is to provide a full day of impactful experiences focused on: city leadership, education, transportation, conflict resolution, public safety and sports.

Community Relations is partnering with CMPD, the Charlotte Fire Department, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library and others to create fun and engaging program for the students. All city departments are invited to be a part of the program.

The city understands the value of working with youth throughout the community and both Community Relations and CMPD are making this work a priority. Whether it is through the Peer Club, QUEST, Bridge the Difference, movie screenings and dialogues about The Hate U Give or the REACH program which takes referred students and teaches them about life skills and career exploration, youth are engaging with the city in a very positive way.

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