Core Principles & Values

SFY is unique: no other organization with a national focus exists solely for the purpose of improving police/youth interactions, advancing the cause of training public safety officers in the science of child and youth development and mental health, and supporting communities partnering to promote strong police/youth relationships.

SFY’s Core Values

We believe that investing in training officers about how to interact effectively with children and youth supports the development of positive relationships between youth and police and strengthens communities.
We believe that police trainings providing practical insights from the science of child and adolescent development and psychiatry are effective methods for enhancing the skills and options of officers can use when working with children and youth.
We believe the data demonstrating disproportionate rates of police contact with minority youth can be addressed through training and innovation.
We believe that police departments’ effectiveness and legitimacy is a function of the quality of their interactions with children and youth.
We believe training programs are most effective when officers and youth are involved in creating and presenting them.
We believe that communities should be partners with police in assuring the safety of children and youth, and promoting respectful relationships.
We believe that how children and youth are policed has critical long-term implications for youths’ perceptions of their ability to fully participate in American society and respect for the American system of law and order.

Service Philosophy: Build & Strengthen to Grow

All services are premised on listening: what does your department need? How and who can best meet those needs?
We can best serve departments by assessing the quality of police/youth interactions, using the findings of the assessment to train officers, and providing ongoing technical assistance to sustain the training lessons
Each of service can also be used independently.
All our police training programs integrate cutting edge scientific and sociological research in practical terms so that officers leave trainings with concrete skills to apply in the field.

Value Added

Support clarification of Police Departments’ approach to working with teens, including support for cultural shift, structural changes in deployment of officers and development of new approaches to policing youth
Improve quality of Department relations with youth and community, demonstrated by reduced complaints, confrontations and arrests for minor infractions, as well as improved integration of police with community programming and resources;
Promote use of effective strategies and tactics help reduce officer’s OTJ stress, thereby reducing escalation of minor conflicts;