PAWTUCKET -The city of Pawtucket will receive a federal grant of $122,951 for Gang Resistance Education and Training, an anti-gang program that trains police officers to teach elementary and middle school students to choose to avoid gangs across the country, announced Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., on Sept. 19.
This funding is in addition to previous federal funding, which until September only supported two officers. Now, three officers - including Barovier - are certified to teach in Pawtucket.
The officers are certified to teach students in three area middle schools and eight elementary schools. The 13-week middle school program focuses on seventh-grade students, who are considered old enough to understand the severity of gang-related issues, but who haven't yet been recruited by gangs. The three middle schools using G.R.E.A.T. are Samuel Slater Middle School, Goff Junior High and Joseph Jenks Junior High, all in Pawtucket, about five miles north of the Brown campus.
Pawtucket police officer Carl Barovier teaches at Jenks, located across the street from McCoy Stadium - home of the Pawtucket Red Sox. At 9:50 a.m. on Tuesday, Barovier walked in full uniform into a seventh-grade classroom, where geography class would usually have normally been held.
This was the first day of G.R.E.A.T. for the 7th graders, who weren't shy about participating. Barovier opened by asking if any of them knew of any big-time gangs. "MS 13!" a few kids shouted repeatedly from the back of the room. Though a good portion of class time was devoted to reading together from an educational booklet and talking about concepts like "respect," Barovier didn't hesitate to discuss the specifics of gang culture. He listed 11 prominent gangs in the Pawtucket area and asked students if they knew of them. A few students seemed to be competing with each other - or possibly with Barovier - to recognize as many gang names as possible.
"It's really cool for them to talk about it in class. A lot of the kids in the schools know who the gang members are," Barovier said afterwards. He added that students are willing to talk about gangs until they have to claim any connection to members.
"Snitches get stiches," Barovier said.
Though some students may not absorb every part of the lesson, Barovier said he's confident its presence still deters students from joining gangs. The program makes steps in building better relationships outside the classroom between students and teachers - and between students and police officers.
As part of G.R.E.A.T, students will take field trips to the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut and Museum of Science in Boston this year. Officers plan to hold mentoring sessions between students and parents to establish better study habits for students and to get parents more involved in their children's
education.
"A lot of the problems with kids is they can't get their homework done," Barovier said. Of Jenks' students, about 25 percent are foreign-born, and about 35 percent speak a language other than English, he said.
Students' problems in school are often compounded by the cultural disconnect between parents and teachers, Barovier said. When parents can't help their children with homework or school issues, the children can be quick to give up on their work. With schoolwork seemingly out of their control, students will look elsewhere for a way to make an impact - which can lead to their involvement in gangs, Barovier said.
In August, the Department of Justice granted Pawtucket funding to control and prevent crime, and six cities, including Providence, received similar funding this September. By contrast, Pawtucket's recent grant will be used solely for gang resistance training.
"This money will enable Pawtucket police officers (to) provide more children with positive alternatives to gang activity and enhance the quality of life in our neighborhoods by stopping violence before it starts," Reed, the state's senior senator, wrote in a Sept. 19 press release.
Pawtucket Mayor James Doyle said feedback about the program has been positive so far but admits "the jury is still out on this thing. We don't have enough of a time frame to determine if there are any holes in the program or if it's perfect."
Both Doyle and Barovier stressed that regardless of what kids were learning specifically, the establishment of a good relationship between the police and the students was a goal in itself. "A police officer is not a robot dressed in blue who is out to make everyone miserable," Doyle said.
Barovier said his relationships with students have improved since he arrived at Jenks. "I get the high five and the fist bump, when before it was 'Yo, it's five-oh, it's the po-po!' "
