HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-01-23Dryden Youth Commission
January 23, 2006
Minutes
Present: Tracy Kurtz, JoEllen Bailey, Kristen Blackman, Kris Bennett, Nita Baldwin
Guests: Chief Margaret Ryan, Mackenzie Covert (Dryden Police Dept.); Officer Bill Stanbro (NYS Police, school
resource officer for TST BOCES and Dryden Central Schools)
Tracy called the meeting to order at 6:35; introductions were made. Since there was not a quorum, approval of
minutes and election of officers were tabled.
Annual Program Report — Police & Community, Jr, Police Academy Officer Mackenzie Covert talked first about Jr.
Police Academy which is held for 1 week each July. She coordinates this program, tries to run it like a real police
academy but at an age- appropriate level. Last summer 28 youth participated. Youth get t- shrts, run in the morning in
cadence. Mackenzie gets other agencies to come (canine unit, sheriff s dept. for radar checks, state police for crime
scene and evidence). There is also a field trip component — past examples include Myers Point (for sheriff's boat
patrol) and MacCormick Secure Youth Detention Center, Kids have a paperwork component. Dave Hall from CCE
handles advertising, recruiting and signing up, this is one of his Summer Skies programs.
The Police & Community classroom component involves going to each classroom at Dryden Elementary School twice
a year, and speaking at 2 assemblies /year at Freeville Elementary School. She eats lunch with the students most
Fridays; occasionally Chief Ryan comes, too. Classroom presentations vary depending on grade level and any
special topics that she is asked to cover. Some topics are drugs, making the right decisions and peer pressure. She
shows all the items on her belt to the students and explains what each is for. She aims to build a relationship with the
students so they know they can trust police officers and go to them if they have a problem. She also does occasional
visits to or tours for Dryden Head Start classes. Dryden Police Dept. also participates with the state police at
Halloween and the Victorian Winter Fest when they fingerprint children and give safety info.
Report on Dryden Youth, Law Enforcement Perspective Officer Bill Stanbro is in his 3rd year as a school resource
officer, dividing his time between TST BOCES on Warren Rd. and Dryden Schools, mostly the middle and high
schools. He works in cooperation with the school, BOCES, Dryden Police, EMT, & Sheriffs Dept. Problems he sees
at school are mostly bullying, harassment, fights /assaults. He feels that many things get magnified and shared
because word spreads so quickly due to student use of cell phones, instant messaging, text messaging and email.
Cyber bullying also occurs. Students are allowed to have cell phones at school (though turned off in class); there
have been incidents of improper use of photo phones in locker rooms. He is very concerned about internet safety
and cited the case of a local girl who left school last year with a 35 year old man she'd met on the internet. Youth are
frequently unsupervised when on -line. He suggested parents and others visit www.netsmartz.org which has good
resources to encourage safe use of the internet. He tries to teach youth what is a crime, what crimes are being
committed and how kids can protect themselves.
Margaret and Bill talked about recent gang activity in Dryden — drugs, weapons, fights, assaults, graffiti. The exact
number of members is unknown, somewhere between 50 and several hundred; they see people wearing "colors ",
hats, bandanas. Local members are affiliated with Bloods and Crips, in the summer Margaret knew of at least 6
homes, including 2 with high schoolers, in Dryden with gang members. Some recent arrests and increased police
vigilance, presence and enforcement of traffic laws has driven some of the gang members away. Gang members
appear to be laying the groundwork and recruiting locally. Part of gang initiation involves committing a crime. Gangs
® are also establishing in Ithaca.
Bill said it's helped to establish school as "safe ground" where no gang flare ups are tolerated. He feels that parents
need to be involved with their children and in their activities to help prevent the children from getting into trouble. Kris
gave him the new CCE program flyer and said that programs like those funded by DYC can offer healthy, fun
activities for youth. CCE welcomes referrals; if Bill knows of a youth who would benefit and needs encouragement to
is join, he should contact CCE,
Margaret sees that problems are happening to youth at much younger ages. Kids know a lot more at younger ages;
technology is a part of this. Bill and Margaret observed that the primary drug problem is youth using prescription
drugs for non- medical reasons or that were not prescribed to them. We thanked Bill and Margaret for coming.
Misc updates Kris distributed Dave and Tom's program updates and current flyer, an updated DYC roster, info on a
scholarship available for local youth to attend summer environmental camp in the Adirondacks. Kris also shared a
written update (attached) about membership, annual reports (deadline for programs to submit is Feb. 24; Kris showed
a draft template for the DYC annual report) and recreation (problem with civil service requirements for Dryden camp).
Program Liaisons Kristen signed up as liaison to Freeville Youth Jobs; JoEllen as liaison to Dryden Youth Jobs.
Feb. meeting We agreed to meet on Tuesday Feb. 21, 6:30 PM at Town Hall. Kris will invite Barb Baker from CCE;
she worked with a group of Dryden youth last summer on a youth mapping project. (Note from Kris: Barb is unable
to attend in Feb. but will attend the March 21 meeting.)
The meeting adjourned at 8:208
DYC Nlinutes Page 2 January 23, 2006,