Boston Police Activities League, Inc.

PAL is uniquely positioned to play an integral role in supporting the BPD in its incredible efforts to contribute to making Boston a world-class destination. To that end PAL is evolving to play a larger role, working collaboratively with the BPD to identify the best programs and raise significant capital to provide a level of consistent support. In addition, The BPD has recently created a new Bureau of Community Engagement. As part of their strategy the BPD will “Strengthen and expand relationship with PAL, streamlining communication and coordination to maximize impact of resources and investments”.

The Boston Police Department is a national leader in community policing, a widely accepted philosophy whereby the police and the
community work together to solve problems of crime, disorder and safety issues and to improve the quality of life for everyone in that community. A crucial element of the BPD’s community policing strategy is connecting with the city’s at-risk youth through educational, social, cultural and athletic activities to promote an environment of mutual trust and respect. Programs like PAL have helped make Boston a safe place to live and work and a vibrant community. By focusing a part of their community policing efforts on the city’s youth, the
BPD seeks to create a safer environment and build mutual trust and respect through programs, activities and events that occupy their free time and thus provide an alternative and productive path in life.

PAL supports a broad array of programs and activities that create the opportunity for the community, children/youth and BPD Officers to interact in a positive and constructive manner. This engagement cultivates relationships based on trust and respect, with the ultimate goal of creating a safe environment that affords all citizenry the opportunity to flourish. This in turn positively reflects the efficacy of other Boston-based non-profit organizations. Founded in 1985 and historically focused on athletics, PAL has expanded to support a wide range of programming that serves to enhance youth police dialogue and provide outlets to keep the city’s youth busy and out of trouble.

PAL currently supports over 40 programs as well as various activities and events citywide. These programs positively impact the lives of over 6,500 youth. In the last 12 months, over 350 officers also participated in PAL sponsored programs and activities.

Three of PAL’s signature programs include:

● Women in Blue - an association of dedicated female Boston Police Officers of various ranks and units, working together – not only to increase trust, but to build stronger relationships with youth, particularly young women and girls. Women in Blue combine joint participation in athletics with productive dialogues and discussions, as well as exposing young women to opportunities and new
experiences.

● We Belong - is hosted weekly by Boston Police Officers. The Mission of the program is to empower inner-city youth to be the leaders of tomorrow through public service education, community service and outreach. The We Belong Program is a community-based leadership program that provides a fun, safe, and challenging experience for high school juniors and seniors to develop their leadership skills, explore potential careers, learn about issues and challenges facing our communities, meet the leaders of the organizations working to address them and learn how to participate.

● The Jr. Police Academy offers multiple, weeklong programs that introduce the participants to the various operational components of the Department with a visit to Police Headquarters for tours of the Identification and Ballistics Unit, trips to the Police Academy, Range, Mounted Unit, Harbor Patrol and more. The program is in its 14th year providing over 250 kids each summer (including a week for children with disabilities) with the above experiences as well as opportunities to learn about the City of Boston through a myriad of field trips.

Additional programs and activities include:

● Shop with a Cop
● Nationally Recognized Gang Intervention
● After School Educational Activities
● Youth Enrichment Programs/OST Programming
● Safety Forums
● Athletic Leagues (baseball/softball, football, lacrosse, boxing, skiing, swimming, etc.)
● Music/Arts Programming
● GED Programming
● City-Wide Girls Initiatives
● Field Trip

PAL has provided over $9,000,000 throughout its history to support BPD efforts. Funding was largely provided by board members/community leaders. Under new strategic direction aimed at maximizing its impact, PAL is expecting to double its revenues in 2019 to enhance its infrastructure and expand programming. With this additional support, PAL will have the resources necessary to provide more effective support for new and existing programs, and improve feedback and reporting on the effectiveness of its supported programs and events.