One of Norfolk’s finest was recognized by Boston 25 Morning News Zip Trip on August 4, both for the work she’s already done and for the innovative programming she’s introducing in the coming school year.
Detective and School Resource Officer Michelle Palladini was honored during the Hometown Hero segment with a plaque recognizing her groundbreaking work with her L.E.A.P. program. The program began in the Norfolk school district, but it’s expanded to other New England communities and is set to expand across the country, first into Texas and potentially into California.
L.E.A.P stands for Leadership, Empowerment, Awareness, and Protection. The program mobilizes the Norfolk community’s many resources to help Norfolk teens make responsible decisions about their personal safety, emotional networks, and their entire lives.
Detective Palladini explains that her work echoes the core beliefs of the Norfolk police department.
“We believe in the benefits of community policing and building positive relationships with our residents, she said. “In addition, we have a progressive school district that takes character education seriously for our kids.”
The combination is pure synergy.
“It’s groundbreaking, the work we’ve been doing, and how the school district has leveraged the school resource officer position to bring forth a lot of good citizenship to the kids.”
She’s even come up with a term for the adults who live and work around the children she focuses on: “community stakeholders.” These can include not only parents but also teachers, coaches, scout leaders, law enforcement, and anyone else who comes into regular contact with teens and young adults.
This year will see three innovations in the L.E.A.P. program.
First, Palladini is expanding her outreach to parents through her Coffee Chats. In this round-table format, Palladini prepares a topic of interest to local parents, gives a presentation, and then they engage in discussion. She points out that L.E.A.P. is “not just about educating kids but also empowering parents, empowering teachers, to look at our kids and see what their needs are, and feel supported.” She’ll hit hard topics head-on, such as sexting or how to stand up for yourself in a healthy relationship.
This year, a second coffee chat will be added in the evenings for parents who can’t attend during working hours, and this chat will also utilize Facebook Live. Although parents can still attend in person, Palladini says, “Parents can login from home and get the same information.”
Second, she’s beginning a new club for empowering middle school girls called Crown and Shield. “Crown is the confidence part,” Palladini says, “and Shield is the protection. It’s got a little bit of self-defense, emotional protection, and healthy coping mechanisms girls can use when they’re feeling stressed.” The program will combine mindfulness, journaling, yoga, and an element of self-defense and personal safety.
“This is a brand new program,” Palladini says.
And third, L.E.A.P. is poised to branch out nationally. Tireless in her efforts to mobilize community stakeholders, Palladini offers L.E.A.P. training to other law enforcement officers so they can implement their own programs in their own communities.
“I’ve packaged up what I put together, and I now train other school resource officers,” says Palladini. “As far as the training goes, it’s kind of a second job. It’s a labor of love, and I’m using my own vacation time to train people. But I believe in it, and I know it’s going to change the lives of kids because it has, and it will continue to do that.”
On July 25, Palladini talked with District Attorney Michael Morrissey on the Norfolk County Prevention Coalition cable show with school resource officers from Walpole and Randolph, helping to bring awareness to the ways that having an officer at the fulcrum between community and law enforcement can help students make good decisions about potentially risky behaviors.
This November, Palladini will travel to Texas for her first training sessions outside the New England area, and she’s working on having a similar cross-country training session at a location in California.
“It’s exciting to see something that was started in Norfolk, now going across the country,” said Palladini. It’s a testament to the community that we have, and the support between the school and the community and the stakeholders involved. We can really call ourselves a model agency.”
At the heart of Palladini’s work is the sense of Norfolk, and every community, as a village that can rally around the hearts and minds of its most vulnerable members.
Palladini says, “We’re disconnected. The work that I’m doing is trying to reconnect people.”
To see the video of Michelle Palladini receiving the Hometown Hero award, visit www.fox25boston.com. For more information about L.E.A.P., visit www.leapprogram.net.
Issue Date:
September, 2017
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