Blog 8 - Independent Component 1 Proposal

Leadership is not given it is learned!

1. Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.
• My plan for my independent component is to create a club with two of my peers who are, Jessica Jimenez-Aguilar and Isaiah Garcia. The club that we are planning to create will be titled “Leadership Club”. The purpose of the club is to get youngsters involved in the Military and Law Enforcement by learning and gaining hands on experience. It is a great way to work on developing leadership skills, bettering self-discipline, and building long lasting friendships. Because the club itself is Law Enforcement and Military based there will be physical training as well as short class lectures.
• Once the club is up and running there will be weekly meeting held on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. But if it seems too much for the students then plans can always change to accommodate our club members. We are planning to also have weekend meetings to physically train the students who join the club. During the weekday meetings, the plan is to go over basic information and several class lectures that will be fun and entertaining 
2. Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.
• Like I’ve stated in my previous question, we would meet at least once a week with the students who join the club. If the members of the club as well as the staff meets once time on a weekly basis for at least 1 hour and have side trainings on the weekend then that would give us 30 hours. The way we would show the evidence would be by completing “Minute Forms” provided by ASB.
• If more evidence is needed then pictures would be taken and gathered so at the very end a scrapbook can be made and kept as a memory of an accomplishment that was made.  
3. Explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.
• The club itself is to make strong leaders for the future of America. Law Enforcement and Military go along the lines of the great amount of work effort, dedication and motivation one must put into it. Creating the club will help me explore my topic in depth due to the greater amounts of research I’d have to put in and teach other students who are interested in Law Enforcement. In the Law Enforcement field one must be able to show command presence and be able to work under stress. Many people don’t understand how Law Enforcement works and voicing my opinion and showing some research would help them understand what Law Enforcement really is about and several tasks Officers undergo.
• The several lectures that I plan to give the members of the club would go in much greater depth and will benefit me in completing my senior project. It may be possible that ideas can be given during lecture time.

  

Blog 7 - Second Interview Preparation

Law Enforcement Officers put their lives on the line for others to live.

The purpose of the second interview is to justify your mentor as an expert in the field. You will be asking them at least 5 questions about their background and/or the background of the organization or company where they work.

1. Who is your mentor and where do they work? If their workplace does not reflect their expertise, what makes them an expert?
• My mentor is Adrian Rodriguez and he works in the Pomona Police Department. He's been a Police Officer since 2008 and has encountered several life or death situations while being on patrol. The Pomona Police Department stands out from other surrounding agencies for the reason being that the city of Pomona is known for the high crime rates that occur on a daily basis.
2. What five questions will you ask them about their background?
• Why did you pursue a Law Enforcement career?
• What are something's that have helped you in becoming successful?
• Do you feel like you've made a difference in peoples' lives? If so, why? If not, why?
• How do you deal with calls for service on a daily basis?
• What can you tell me about yourself that has helped you throughout your career?

Blog 6 - Advisory Prep

The Los Angeles County Sherriff's Department is one of the biggest agencies in California.

1. What has worked well for you concerning senior project this year? What has made it a positive experience for you?
• Some things that have worked well for me regarding my senior project this year is finding more mentors that specialize in certain fields within the law enforcement career and being able to go on as many ride along as I wish to. One part that I want to incorporate in my senior project is the different perspectives from Sherriff's and Police Department. Every agency has their own way of handling calls for service therefore, joining another explorer post would benefit my project a lot more.
• My mentors are always supportive and helpful in many different ways. Going on ride alongs has taught me a lot about becoming a police officer. One must be able to perform under pressure, be able to make quick decisions and always keep "Officer Safety" in mind.
2. What are you finding difficult concerning senior project? How can you adapt to make that portion work better for you? How might the senior team help?
• What I find difficult concerning my senior project is the scheduling that I have between my mentors and I. It tends to get very difficult at times to go on ride alongs because my mentor will cancel last minute due to having a busy work schedule or an emergency that must be taken care of. There are several ways I can adapt to the problem and that is go on ride alongs with other officers even though they are not my mentor. Like I've stated before, every agency has their own way of handling calls for service and within that agency officers tend to have their own way of handling a call. Riding with Officers who are not my mentors will teach me several ways of handling  calls for service or different techniques when it comes to police reports. Another thing that I find somewhat difficult is being able to go on ride alongs with other agencies. Some agencies have an age limit which is 18 years of age and other agencies you must be a participating Explorer. I may have found the solution to the previous concern and that is joining another explorer post but instead of being the Police Department it would be the Sherriff's Department. Unfortunately, I don't think there's any way possible that the senior team may be able to help.

Blog 5 - Interview 1 Reflection

The picture above was taken long before my interviewee who is on the right side, Jeffrey Cox, retired.

1. What is the most important thing I learned from the interview? Is there anything I would do differently for other interviews?
• There are several things that I learned throughout the interview but something that stood out the most was the change in Law Enforcement back then to now and the way it's viewed by the outside world. Mr. Cox stated that people now have a tendency of using their cellphones to either take picture or record the scene when officer are responding to a call for service. The action that those people take are making the life of an officer much more difficult due to being viewed in various ways. One common error that is done by citizens is that if a police officer is seen going hands on a suspect it is right away determined as "Police Brutality" therefore laws and regulations are being changed and enforced. Today's technology is much more advanced than technology from 20 years ago and that is mainly because the world we live in is constantly innovating everything. It does make communication much more easier, but it also makes the internet a much more useful tool which in some cases is not needed when used in the wrong way.
• I would ask more questions and try to have better communication with the person I'm interviewing. I would also relax a bit more so that the interview flow much more smoothly.
2. Did I get additional resources and contacts? What is the most useful? Why?
• In the interview itself I did not get any additional contacts that would benefit me but I did receive a recommendation of people who I should interview next for further information about Law Enforcement. Mr. Cox informed me about retired or active police officers that write books, one being Joseph Wambaugh who wrote "The Onion Field" based on a true story. Before starting the interview Mr. Cox had informed me of several connections he has who are retired Officers, FBI Agents, detectives, Captains, etc. that would benefit me in my Senior Project.
3. What makes my interviewee qualified to help me?
• My interviewee is a retired officer who worked for two different Police Departments in his short career time. Mr. Cox has experience with K9, detective work, patrol officer, Explorer Advisor, and performing the task of a Corporal as well as Sergeant. Due to Mr. Cox's background affiliation with Law Enforcement and the countless hours he put in work for his career it can be said that he was successful in that field of choice. Although he retired at an early age he shows knowledge of effective techniques that are implemented in his daily life and has also helped him become the person who he is today. 
   

Blog 4 - House Advisory Prep

 

1. Write a short explanation of what you are hoping to accomplish through your senior project topic. You will be sharing out on what you've written here with your house advisory and classmates on Friday, 9/11.
• Throughout the course of my Senior Project which is, Law Enforcement, I am hoping to accomplish many things with it. First of all, the main reason why Law Enforcement is my Senior Project Topic is due to the fact that in today's society Law Enforcement Officers are viewed matter, criticized and looked down upon. Many believe that Law Enforcement Officers abuse of the power that is given to them and don't do what's right for the community. A goal would be to prove all the people with those types of mentality wrong. In the 3 years that I've been in the Explorers Program I've had the opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with many Police Officers as well as retired ones. I've learned so much about them and I've also had the chance of riding with some. While on patrol I get to see the many things that others don't such as the stress that they undergo and the critical decisions they make in a blink of an eye. It is their duty to keep the community safe and help anyone who needs it. Law Enforcement Officers out their lives on the line for citizens whom they don't even know. They take their job seriously; even though, there are some Officers who do abuse the power they have it does not necessarily mean that all of them fall under that same category. In today's society everyone receives a label no matter of their so called "ranking in life". It's all about how you act in life or your physical appearance which is how one is judged by others. Officers receive the label of "pigs" which does go back to many years. This is an example that everyone is given labels and the amount of authority or their profession would not matter. One last thing that I plan to accomplish through my Senior Project Topic is to give other individuals the basic knowledge about the way Law Enforcement truly works and the different divisions a department may offer. For those who are interest but don't know where to begin their research, my topic will give them the necessary tools to understand a lot better what Law Enforcement is about. Many believe that once you go into the Law Enforcement career you will always be a Patrol Officer which is not true. There are opportunities throughout your career that will allow you to rank up which is the same thing as receiving a promotion. Another way to become something "greater" is to specialize in something specific such as Narcotics, Undercover, Gangs, etc. In order to become an Officer who is qualified and ready to be an expert in a specific division they must be a Patrol Officer for a certain amount of years. It is important that one knows exactly what they are getting themselves into when pursuing a career as dangerous as Law Enforcement.

Blog 3 - First Interview Preparation

1.  Who do you plan to interview? Why?
• The person who I plan to interview is my mentor, Officer Rodriguez. The reason being would be the experience he's had while being in patrol as well as being part of the rigorous SWAT Tactics Force team. Like I've stated in my previous blog, Officer Rodriguez has been exposed to all sorts of call for service which makes him the best person to be interviewed.
2. Five questions will be assigned to all seniors to ask. What additional questions do you plan to ask? Ask open-ended questions.
• How did you prepare yourself for this type of career?
• What are somethings that has helped you the most while being on patrol?
• Why did you choose to follow this pathway as your career?

Blog 2 - Summer Mentorship

 

 

This is one of the many patrol units that Police Officers use when going on patrol.

1. List the contact name, phone number, and organization of the person with whom you volunteered.
• Officer A. Rodriguez
• (909) 620- 2155
• Pomona Police Department
2. What qualified this person as an expert in your topic choice?
• Officer Rodriguez is one of the many police officer who work for the City of Pomona. What makes him stand out from others and what qualifies him as an expert in the field would be the many countless hours and dedication he puts into his career. Besides being a Police Officer he is part of the few group of Police Officers who volunteer their time to lead as example and teach teenagers from ages 14-21 the reality behind a Law Enforcement career.  The group of teenagers is known as the Pomona Police Explorers Post 160. Officer Rodriguez started off as a Pomona Police Explorer in his early teens, he then graduated from the Academy and began his career as a Pomona Police Officer with a degree on Psychology. He's been working in the department since 2008 and throughout his career he's experienced many things that other Police Officers from other agencies don't experience throughout their career. Officer Rodriguez has received training about patrol, narcotics, gangs, SWAT and has received several trainees who are graduates from the Academy. He's dealt with numerous foot and vehicle pursuits, high priority calls, life threatening situations and many more.  
3. List three questions for further exploration now that you've completed your summer hours.
• What are some ways to handle robbery, burglary, and petty theft incidents?
• What is the training to specialize in certain areas such as gangs or narcotics consist of?
• What is consider a threat and not a threat when handling priority one incidents? 
4. What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?
• While being on patrol with my mentor I learned several things about my career. The thing that stood out the most was always having officer safety. Meaning, an officer must know at all times their current location when assisting a call, keeping a certain distance from civilians and searching an individual for any possible weapons or drugs. Officer safety can be said to be the number one thing that keeps an officer safe from possible danger. My mentor along with backing officers displayed that factor at all times because as many know there will always be people who dislike officers and will do anything to harm them. 
5. What is your senior project topic going to be? How did mentorship help you make your decision? Please explain.
• My Senior project topic will be Law Enforcement and what influenced my decision was being part of the Explorers program since my freshman year of high school. I found a burning desire to learn more and explore what really means to be a police officer and the mental as well as the physical training one must undergo in order to be prepared for the real life problems especially in a city where no one ever knows what to expect. Mentorship for me consisted of many ride alongs with my mentor, Officer Rodriguez, which gave me the necessary tools to comprehend what a police officer does when being on patrol. Besides being an Explorer for Pomona, mentorship helped me in making my final decision about focusing in Law Enforcement to be my Senior Project. I found that it is unpredictable what a Police Officer may face when being on duty which means they always have to "expect the unexpected" and that is the main factor that influenced my decision. I have a passion for Law Enforcement and becoming a Police Officer who works for Pomona is a dream that will come true when the day comes.

The picture above is a clear example of Officer Safety put to the test.