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More than 20 Milwaukee police recruits volunteer to lead activities for students at Carmen Middle School of Science and Technology on the city’s northwest side.
When the whistle sounded, eighthgrader Steven Vue sprang from the gym floor and raced around several cones.
Cheering him on were Milwaukee police recruits Daryal Goss and Savaughn Boston.
The agility drill was just one of the activities led by the recruits as they volunteered Friday at Carmen Middle School of Science and Technology, Northwest Campus, an MPS charter school.
“In two weeks, they will graduate and be police officers,” said Isiah King, the school’s dean of students, as he addressed about 180 students in grades six through eight in the gym.
“They’ve gone through the training, but I believe that today they can build reShe lationships with you,” he continued. “Many of them will probably be in the neighborhoods that you live in, so today’s important.”
A table in the gym was stacked high with food, socks, hats and other clothing items collected by the students and recruits. The donations will benefit local families in need, King said.
The students divided into two groups and rotated through stations. Those in the gym participated in the agility competition and a water-bottle flipping contest, trying to land the half-filled bottles upright. Those in another room heard officers answer questions from their fellow students.
“We learned that they’re here to protect the city, and we shouldn’t be scared of the police,” eighth-grader Melanie Gonzalez said after the question-answer session.
added officers also explained the rules they must follow when they decide to use pepper spray or Tasers.
The event helped to humanize officers, said Andrew Stewart, one of 22 recruits who volunteered.
“I definitely believe in reaching out to people,” he said. “I think there should be more reaching out and more interacting with the schools.”
Those actions, he said, can build relationships and help prevent things like the violent unrest seen in Milwaukee and other places after high-profile police shootings.
“There’s a lot of misunderstanding, a lot of disconnect between society and the police,” he said. “I think we can fix that and make it better for the future.”
Stewart and his fellow recruits will graduate Feb. 16.