Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


Michigan students will again benefit from the addition of 31 law enforcement officers recently trained in the Teaching, Educating, and Mentoring (TEAM) School Liaison Program.

The Michigan State Police Grants and Community Services Division recently hosted the four-day training.

TEAM is a school-based, law-related curriculum that is taught to grades K-12 by TEAM-trained police officers with the goal of uniting educators, students, and law enforcement officers to better equip children to protect themselves from crime.

During the 40-hour training course, officers receive instruction in student/juvenile psychology, classroom management, and public speaking.

Locally, the class included officers from the Fenton Police Department and the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.

In addition to traditional topics like personal safety, how to dial 911, the law and you, and dating violence, the TEAM curriculum has been updated to address the topic of school safety and security including facility assessments, bullying and harassment, cyber-crime, social media use, illicit drugs, and vaping.

TEAM allows officers to teach at any of the three levels of education - elementary, middle, or high school - public or private - aligning with the Michigan Model for Health. The curriculum has been implemented in over 250 Michigan school districts.