By Robert Florida
Twelve-year-old Tyler Roman says his dream is to one day become a surveillance expert for a law enforcement agency.
“I like IT and detective work, so I’d love to work in police surveillance,” says Tyler, who attends Newark’s Robert Treat Academy Charter School.
On Monday morning, Tyler’s dream took a step closer to becoming a reality, as he joined 19 other children for the start of the Public Safety Youth Academy, an annual summer program for Essex County children between the ages of 8-13.
The academy is sponsored by the Police and Fire Divisions in Newark and East Orange, as well as the Newark Police Department Community/Clergy Affairs Unit, theEssex County Sheriff’s Office, and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office. Officials from those entities volunteer to work with the children, so the program is free of charge.
The academy’s aim is to show children what it’s like to work as a police officer or a firefighter. Throughout the summer, they’ll also get a closeup view of the inner workings of the Sheriff’s and the Prosecutor’s offices and learn about various careers in law enforcement.
“It’s important for our youth to know how essential law enforcement is, how it works, and how it affects our communities,” said Debra Smith-Gregory, president of the NAACP Newark branch. “Law enforcement offers our youth many interesting and novel career paths, so this academy is a really good idea.”
On Monday, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens, II welcomed the children during a kickoff class held at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Justice Building. Stephens also introduced a Newark Municipal judge, who swore the children into the academy. Raising their right hands, the children vowed to work hard, pay attention, and learn as much as they can.
The academy, which runs July 17 to August 4, has an ambitious agenda. The children will visit the Essex County Prosecutor’s Crime Scene Lab, where they’ll learn about fingerprinting, DNA, and other evidence, as well as the Drug Enforcement Agency, Rutgers University Police, and the Sheriff’s Office bomb squad unit. There’s also a day-long trip to the Liberty Science Center. They’ll do other fun outings such as seeing a movie, visiting the Turtle Back Zoo, and swimming at a local pool.
Milagros Cuevas, Tyler’s mother, says she wanted him to use his summer fruitfully. She recently took a public safety class for adults, which she enjoyed, so wanted her son to have the same opportunity.
“I didn’t want him to sit at home playing video games,” says Cuevas. “I enjoyed the public safety class I took and wanted Tyler to have a similar opportunity to learn about law enforcement and public safety. And I hope the academy will have him achieve his dream – to become a computer expert in law enforcement.”
