Minneapolis schools, police join forces to relaunch after-school program
MINNEAPOLIS – A pilot program is underway that hopes to bring back Minneapolis Police Activities League.
It's an after-school partnership between schools and police to develop and nurture strong youth in the community – and it will look a lot different than in the past.
For decades, the Minneapolis Police Activities League took young people on a journey of discovery. Learning more than sports, PAL taught lessons that last a lifetime.
That all came to an end in 2019, a shortage of officers and funds sent resources to essential departments, leaving PAL a memory of how things used to be.
"It does take a village, and it takes every one of us. The schools, the police department, the various partnerships – all very important to build our community strong," said Laura Cavender, associate superintendent of Minneapolis Public Schools.
Cityview Community School Principal Renee Montague says she is proud to be a part of the resurgence, the rebuilding of PAL.
"As a learning community, it's more opportunities for my students to be more involved and to be active," Montague said.
And that's the goal of Officer Krystal Scott. She will lead the effort to get kids engaged in PAL.
"Building from the ground up .. I get the opportunity to play and interact with students, staff that are here, too, but my main job here for the students is to interact, build trust, relationships," Scott said.
Officer Scott is not a school resource officer. She is here to help students be their best selves, through sports and programs. But she needs the help of the community to make this possible.
"Anyone that's, you know, available to help this opportunity to support students, to support kids, this is the future," Scott said. "I welcome them to come with their positive attitudes and go-getter attitude to get a job done."
The job of helping young people learn while having fun.
"We're looking for safety, security, care and welfare of our students, and I think the men in blue and the women in blue will be able to provide that for us," said Cornelius Bishop, assistant principal at Cityview. "Provide some stability, provide some support and provide that hope that we can come together and be one."
The pilot program includes four elementary schools: Cityview, Jenny Lind Elementary School, Lucy Laney Community School and Hall STEM Academy.
MPS and MPD hope community members will get involved to expand the program with more sports teams and mentoring.