March 6, 2016

With hazing incidents generating national as well as local headlines, the Chester County Health Department and the Crime Victims’ Center of Chester County, Inc. will host a “Coaching Boys into Men” (CBIM) training event this month.

Designed to provide athletic coaches with the resources needed to promote respectful behavior among their players, the CBIM training session will be held at the Chester County Government Services Center, Room 170, 601 Westtown Rd. in West Chester, on Monday, March 21, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The session is free, but registration is required, according to a Chester County Health Department press release.

“Athletic coaches play an extremely influential and unique role in the lives of young men, often serving as a role model or mentor to the boys they coach,” Jeanne E. Casner, the county’s health director, said in the release. “Because of these special relationships, coaches are uniquely poised to positively influence how young men think and behave both on and off the field.”

In addition to promoting respectful behavior, the Coaching Boys into Men program addresses ways in which coaches can help prevent relationship abuse, harassment, and sexual assault. All materials necessary to implement the program will be distributed at the training.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three women and one in four men will experience violence from their partners in their lifetimes. One in five women has been raped, and one in two women has experienced some form of sexual assault. Many of those affected were abused before the age of 18, the release said.

On Friday, March 4, Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan announced that charges were filed in the juvenile system against three seniors on the Conestoga High School football team. Hogan said the teens engaged in a broomstick sex assault on a freshman on what the team called “No Gay Thursday.”

The CBIM curriculum consists of a series of coach-to-athlete trainings that illustrate ways to model respect and promote healthy relationships. The CBIM card series instructs coaches on how to incorporate themes associated with teamwork, integrity, fair play, and respect into their daily practice and routine, according to its website.

CBIM first launched in 2001 as a national public service announcement campaign in partnership with the Advertising Council. The television, radio, print, and online ads leveraged over $123 million in donated media and catalyzed grassroots efforts in communities across the country. CBIM has since grown from a broad awareness and action campaign into a comprehensive violence prevention curriculum for coaches and their athletes, the website said.

To reserve a spot for the free March 21 training, click here.  For questions, contact Lindsay Smith, public health educator at the Chester County Health Department, at 610-344-5209. or email lcsmith@chesco.org.

 

For several days next week, K-9 teams inspired by the smell of success will assemble at the Chester County Public Safety Training Campus in South Coatesville.

Chester County is hosting the U.S. Police Canine Association’s (USPCA) Region 6 scent certifications from March 14 to March 16, according to a press release from the Sheriff’s Office.

“We are expecting up to 80 canine teams attempting to certify during the trials, which makes it the largest scent certification event ever hosted in Pennsylvania,” Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh said in the release. “All of the Sheriff’s Office K-9 teams are competing, and we are the only agency with at least one canine in every specialty. After this, we hope that our teams will advance to the national trials in Philadelphia in June, to compete against the best in the world.”

So far, more than 40 narcotic teams have registered as well as 20 explosive teams, nine cadaver teams, and one accelerant team, Welsh said.

The USPCA is the largest and oldest active organization of its kind and Region 6 is comprised of canine law enforcement agencies across Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey. Chester County will also host the USPCA Region 6 Police Dog Field Trials in August. There are already more than 40 narcotic teams registered as well as 20 explosive teams, nine cadaver teams and one accelerant team.

Welsh said Chester County’s hosting of the USPCA event coincides with the 10^th anniversary of the establishment of canine teams in the Sheriff’s Office.

“We began with two canine teams, and now our unit has six handlers and eight canines,” Welsh said in the release. “They provide excellent service, specializing in explosives, narcotics, accelerants, and cadaver. In addition to being nationally certified in their individual scent discipline, all are nationally certified in human tracking, evidence recovery and obedience. The most recent addition to our K-9 unit is a comfort canine, used primarily in the Special Victims Unit.”

Chester County Deputy Sheriff Paul Bryant Jr., the newest member of the Sheriff’s Office K-9 unit, is a Level III trainer and national judge for the USPCA.

“I am excited that the Chester County Sheriff’s Office is hosting this event,” Bryant said in the release. “The response has been phenomenal: Large numbers like this are usually only at national events.”

Along with maintaining a minimum working standard for all K-9 units, Welsh said her office works to improve the abilities of the canines in police work, a goal that results in better service to the community. Chester County Sheriff K-9 members also interact with community groups.

“Many of the residents of Chester County have met our canines and their handlers at schools and community functions across the county,” Welsh said in the release. “We think it’s very important for our citizens to see these incredible animals close up and meet their handlers.”

At the end of last year, Melody, a Labrador-Golden Retriever, joined seven German Shepherds, all of whom are trained in tracking, with specialties in drug, accelerant, explosives or cadaver detection, in the Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit.

Welsh said Melody is available to provide “therapy services” in circumstances when children or adults experience heightened tensions. The dog’s calming presence has already proven to be helpful in relaxing crime victims, especially children, during interviews.