Aurora forum to host students, police Thursday
The City of Aurora and the Aurora Police Department will host "Taking Responsibility and Building Relationships," a student-police forum, from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 1, at the North Island Center, 8 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora.
In a letter to area school superintendents, Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner said the forum is designed to be an open, honest and reflective dialogue between high school students, their peers, law enforcement officials, school leaders and city officials. From 10 to 15 students from each high school are invited to participate in the forum.
High schools invited are East Aurora, West Aurora, Metea Valley, Waubonsie Valley, Neuqua Valley, Oswego East, Oswego, and Illinois Math and Science Academy, Aurora.
The goal is to host a diverse group - in terms of race, gender and grade level - of Aurora students who will discuss national issues and address them at the local level.
Activities will range from a large group discussion moderated by criminal justice professor, Dr. Brandon Kooi of Aurora University, to small group discussions between students and their respective Aurora Police Department school resource officers.
"We can continue building relationships in the City of Aurora and give students an opportunity to be an integral part of the conversation," Weisner said.
Ideally, each high school will host follow-up conversations and activities throughout the year. A model action plan that can be used as a reference point for all schools is being created.
For information, contact Clayton Muhammad, City of Aurora Director of Community Relations, at cmuhammad@aurora-il.org or (630) 774-9306.
From 6:10 to 6:20 p.m., Dr. Brandon Kooi of Aurora University will set the stage with a general overview of a national state of affairs and why proactive measures at the local levels are most effective.
From 6:20 to 6:30 p.m., Aurora Police Chief Kristen Ziman will offer an overview of the Aurora Police Department and its initiatives to build relationships through community policing and school resource officers.
There will be a large group discussion from 6:30 to 7 p.m., moderated by Kooi. A question-and-answer segment with students and police will be held with questions that were submitted by students at the start of the event.
From 7 to 7:30 p.m., there will be small group discussions with Aurora police officers and students. A continuation of the conversation with a more concentrated focus on what is happening at the school level.
From 7:30 to 8 p.m., it will be "Bringing It Back & Taking It Home," with a recap of discussions, common points of interest and announcements of school initiatives for the upcoming semester/year.