Teen Safety Summit helps bridge gap between law enforcement and high school students

TAMPA, Fla. - The third annual Teen Safety Summit kicked off Friday evening at Patel High School, where teenagers and other members of the community got to get to know officers and learn from mental health professionals.

Students at the school got to sit in the driver's seat of squad cars and check out SWAT vehicles used in the area. 

The summit is aimed at helping the community get to know what's behind the badge – bridging the gap between law enforcement and the community. 

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"I grew up in an area that wasn’t the best when it came to safety and crime, so this ties in with me, as I used to see a lot of people in my community that used to deal with mental health issues, and didn’t get the necessary help that they needed," said Andre Jennings, Patel High School’s school resource officer and organizer of the summit.

Jennings hopes the event helps increase approachability, so kids and teenagers aren’t afraid to talk to law enforcement officers if they’re having an issue or hear of one.

"A lot of the things we deal with here in the school, that I personally deal with, is because some kid came up to me and felt comfortable enough to say ‘hey, Officer Jennings, this is what’s going on, I think you might want to see what’s going on.,'" Jennings said. 

Patel High School senior Caden Raymond was one of the students who was at the summit. 

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"You might be a little scared at times or just in general to approach an officer about any situation in terms of what’s going on at home or something you may hear at school," said Raymond. "You might be scared to approach an officer just, because it might negatively affect you, because you’re getting involved and saying something."

They also got to participate in a panel discussion that involved mental health professional.