On February 1, 2017, A headline read, “Gangs, guns and rap videos helped make 2016 Norfolk’s deadliest year in a decade.” The article depicted a photograph of three African American youth holding a firearm—two of those young men were killed due to gun violence. The photograph and the far-too-early loss of life would serve as a catalyst for Norfolk, Virginia, Police Department’s approach to addressing youth gangs, crime, and authentic community engagement. In the years since that headline, the Norfolk Police Department, known as the 2019 CBS National Lip Sync to the Rescue Champions for their rendition of Bruno Mars’s “Uptown Funk,” has been nationally and internationally recognized for more than 20 community engagement programs that reach community members of all ages—including youth in high-risk neighborhoods (at-opportunity communities). Norfolk’s Sergeant William Pickering and Ms. Karen Parker-Chesson are among key departmental staff who, along with community stakeholders, play a major role in the success of the agency’s community outreach efforts.

The Norfolk Police Department has been intentional in trying to reach the youth from Norfolk’s “at-opportunity” communities to positively impact the trajectory of youths’ personal development to become future leaders. Youth who participate in community programs benefit from the positive relationships with additional trustworthy, supportive adults facilitated by these programs, which research shows to be associated with improvements in social and emotional development. In partnership with the community and its youth, the Norfolk Police Department strives to be the incubator of authentic youth engagement and its nexus to crime reduction.