The world can be a scary place, especially for the parents of young children. That’s why it’s so important to teach them how to stay safe. This May, the Ross Medical Education Center campus in Cincinnati invited Officer Joe Turres from the local police department to speak to staff and students. Students and staff were also invited to bring their children to listen to the talk, participate in role-playing, and to be fingerprinted. Officer Turres spent time in the classroom discussing “Stranger Danger.”
The staff, students, and children were all very engaged in the lesson and ideas presented by Officer Turres. At the end of his discussion, he had the children practice how to yell if they felt threatened or unsafe and how to run away from strangers. He then passed out ID kits to each of the students and staff members with young children so they could fingerprint their child and provide a photo to have on file. That way, if any of that information is ever needed, they will have it for the police to use to help identify their child more quickly and easily and to return the child to their parents safe and sound.
After talking to and working with the staff, students, and children, Officer Turres stayed to take photos with the children. It was a very positive experience for all. Shawna Banks, Dental Assistant instructor said, “my son, DeShawn, loved Officer Turres so much. My other son, David, liked the stickers and pencil that came with the ID kit.” Although this was the first time for this type of event at the campus, it was so successful that it is something that will likely be implemented again. “I have already fingerprinted my child and Officer Turres gave me a second kit for my one year old, since he explained it is best to wait until the child is two before fingerprinting them,” shared Dental Assistant student Megan Thomas.
To find out more about keeping your child safe, visit the website of the National Child Identification Program at http://www.childidprogram.com/.