Police Athletic League Youth Enrichment Program (PALYEP)

Funder: U.S. Department of Justice/Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the National Association of Police Athletic/Activities Leagues, Inc.
Amount: $20,244
Funding Period: 3/1/04-8/31/04

The Mott Community College Police Athletic League (PAL) Chapter was established in 2003 in response to the local cutbacks in recreational programming for youth in the city. Faced with limited, socially productive outlets for Flint’s school-age youth, MCC accepted the challenge of developing an athletic program for youth with funding secured through the National PAL Youth Enrichment Program. In its first year, the Track and Field program was an overwhelming success with fifty-three youth participants, ten of whom qualified to compete in regional track meets. MCC’s PAL Chapter received second year funding in 2004 to provide 1) the Track & Field program; 2) Computer Camps; and 3) a Youth Leadership Council.

The Track & Field summer program, consisting of approximately 125 youth participants and an excellent volunteer coaching staff, operates three days per week in the evenings on site at the Michigan School for the Deaf and Blind in Flint, Michigan. Program participants attend weekly practice sessions as well as State and Regional Track Meets and the National A.A.U. Junior Olympics. At the program’s end, a banquet is held to highlight the participation and achievements of our youth and volunteers. The educational component of our Youth Enrichment Program consists of Computer Camps at MCC’s Great Lakes Computer Technology Center. Youth participants are provided with basic computer technology skills training and will receive exposure to other program services which already exist at the CTC which are geared toward building multimedia technology skills, developing social and life management skills, job preparation and training, after-school tutoring and eMentoring. The Youth Leadership Council, a new initiative for our PAL Chapter, will be comprised of youth from the general membership of our youth enrichment programs as described above and an adult volunteer to assist in the coordination of council activities. The Youth Leadership Council has the charge of conducting four community service projects in collaboration with other local non-profit organizations to address some of the challenges facing the youth in our community.