B.C. expands its school-based gang prevention program
Credit to Author: Tiffany Crawford| Date: Thu, 05 Dec 2019 18:05:55 +0000
The B.C. government says it will expand the provincial school-based gang prevention program with a $4.93 million grant.
Minister of Education Rob Fleming, MLA for Surrey-Guildford Gary Begg, and Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth made the announcement Thursday at North Surrey Secondary School.
Fleming said the money will go to helping schools tackle gun violence and early gang prevention in schools.
He said students are dealing with increased complexity in life, with online communication and violence in schools, and the government wants to ensure that youth make positive choices for their future and decisions not to join gangs.
The new funding is in addition to the $1.2 million that was announced for the program earlier this year.
The program, called ERASE (expect respect and a safe education) is offered in priority communities identified by police and safety experts as those that could benefit from additional gang prevention support.
Communities include Abbotsford, Burnaby, Delta, Kamloops, Kelowna, Langley, Nanaimo, Prince George, Surrey, Vancouver, Victoria and Williams Lake.
The new funding will make funding available for more school districts in B.C., including Campbell River, Chilliwack, Courtenay and Hope. It includes training and intensive support focused on gun and gang violence awareness and prevention, and resources for classroom teachers.
“Too often, we hear about the devastating effects of gang life on B.C. youth and their families, which is why we’re taking targeted action and offering intensive supports in B.C. communities that need help the most,” said Fleming.
“By focusing on training and prevention, we are taking important action to support young people earlier and give parents, schools and communities a way to work together toward positive futures.”
To date, more than 8,000 students, parents, educators and community partners have participated in 110 training and education sessions in the initial 12 priority communities, according to the B.C. Ministry of Education.
Each of the 16 priority school districts will receive grants to support the development of local programming, such as after-school clubs and other supports for at-risk youth.
The new funding will also provide monthly reports on public social media activity related to gang activity to all 60 B.C. school districts.
Farnsworth said prevention and intervention at the community level are important parts of combating gun and gang violence.
ticrawford@postmedia.com