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Basketball Builds Positive Relationship Between Hazelwood Students and Police
The familiar squeaking sounds of basketball shoes, the pounding of a basketball on the gym floor, and the yelling from players could be found at the Hazelwood East High School gymnasium recently. The basketball players on one team were from East High, but the opponents in the scrimmage weren’t from a local high school. They were members of the St. Louis County Police Department.
The idea behind the scrimmage came from East High Activities Director Corey Johnson and Captain Norman Mann of the St. Louis County Police Department North County Precinct.
“I discussed this idea with the athletic director (Johnson) of Hazelwood East High School and we both felt it was a great opportunity to reach out to the students in light of the recent events in our region,” said Capt. Norman Mann. “We were able to use basketball as the common ground for the officers and students. This scrimmage provided an excellent ice breaker to ease the tensions on both sides.”
“Captain Mann and I wanted to help bridge the gap and we started with a small group of students,” said Corey Johnson, East High activities director. “Our students get to see police officers in a different setting and it helps the police officers get to know our students.”
The players on both sides agreed the basketball scrimmage allowed them to see each other as regular people, not just either students or authoritative figures.
“These students are our future leaders, and it is our role in law enforcement to ensure they can safely grow to become productive members of our community,” said Mann. “Having strained relationships with students, as well as other citizens, makes this task difficult. The community should be able to trust the police and understand that we are here for them. This trust and confidence in the police will hopefully break down the barriers we are currently experiencing, and be passed down to future generations.”
While both the police department and East High administrators say this was the first scrimmage of its kind, both sides say they expect to have more opportunities to further build upon their partnership.
