At Collington Square Elementary/Middle School, the Johns Hopkins Police Department is stepping up to help students and their families

Students at Collington Square Elementary/Middle School began to recognize friendly faces from the Johns Hopkins Police Department during the most recent school year. Some met their new favorite officer at the Boardroom Chess Club, where students receive mentorship and financial literacy lessons over rooks and pawns. Others spotted the officers distributing groceries at the school's food pantry, where Hopkins recently donated a new freezer. Over the past year, members of the JHPD ran a Christmas toy drive, set up a new community resource room, and shook eighth-graders' hands at graduation at the East Baltimore school.

It's all part of the department's partnership with the Police Athletic/Activities League, a national program that strengthens community-police relationships by supporting youth activities, education, and mentorship.

"It's quite obvious how much of an impact that program has brought," says Mikala Nuccio, community schools coordinator at Collington Square. "The students really sense that support and that people care for them. That's what's most important: for them to feel loved and cared for and heard, and [know] that there are people they can turn to outside of these walls."

The first Police Athletic League was launched by New York City in 1917, but the idea soon spread across the country, growing to more than 300 chapters and expanding to include non-sport activities. The Baltimore Police Department once had its own PAL program for many years, though the initiative was phased out in 2009.

In 2019, the Maryland General Assembly passed the Community Safety and Strengthening Act, which authorized the creation of the JHPD. Through the legislative process in Annapolis, lawmakers representing the districts in which the JHPD operates strengthened the bill with a number of provisions modeling best practices in community-based policing. This included a requirement that the department create, operate, and fully fund its own PAL program, similar to the one run by the University of Maryland, Baltimore in West Baltimore.

"The Police Athletic/Activities League is a powerful example of what can happen when we build on proven models and work alongside our neighbors," says Alicia Wilson, the university's vice president for civic engagement and opportunity. "We are grateful to leaders like Johns Hopkins University Emeritus Trustee Theo Rodgers, whose vision and longstanding commitment to Baltimore helped make UMB's Police Athletic/Activities League possible and inspired the creation of the Johns Hopkins Police Department's PAL. Through this program, we are creating opportunities for young people in East Baltimore to build confidence, strengthen relationships, and become the next generation of Baltimore's leaders."

Adds JHPD PAL director Morgan Jones-Massey: "We wanted to bring something back that worked before. [PAL] was a really huge part of Baltimore City, and a lot of the youth really looked up to those PAL officers. ... So it was kind of a nostalgic thing to bring it back because it was something that people knew so well, that the PAL doors were always open for youth to just come in and find mentorship."

The JHPD officially launched its PAL partnership with Collington Square last summer.

"The PAL Program at Collington Square Elementary/Middle School is a strong example of an anchor institution stepping up for a school community," says Sen. Cory McCray, who represents parts of east and northeast Baltimore in the Maryland State Senate. "In neighborhoods with high concentrations of poverty, it takes additional resources, mentorship, and opportunity to move the needle, and I am grateful our young scholars are benefiting from a partnership committed to improving educational, social, and economic outcomes."

Adds Del. Stephanie M. Smith, who represents northeast Baltimore in Maryland's House of Delegates: "When we create positive opportunities and build trust, we're not just reducing risk—we are building stronger communities and creating real pathways to a safer, healthier future. Programs like the JHPD's PAL play an important role in bringing young people together with positive activity, trusted mentors, and public safety partners. This work matters because when we invest in our residents—especially our youth—we invest in the long-term strength of Baltimore."

The JHPD PAL is currently focused on Collington Square's roughly 200 students in pre-K through eighth grade, though there are hopes to expand the program in the future. According to Jones-Massey, Collington Square was selected because of its proximity to Johns Hopkins' East Baltimore campus and clear desire for additional support and resources.

The result, say several Collington Square staff, has been widely appreciated.

"[The students] love seeing the officers when they come in," says Collington Square community liaison Karen Rivera, who also serves on the PAL Advisory Board. "The staff love them, too, especially Morgan [Jones-Massey]. She's already a part of Collington. Actually, they probably forget that she's not even on our staff because she's there so much."

PAL's next step will be to introduce more programs and resources to Collington Square, including participation in a planned STEM program that will bring as much as $40,000 in technology, resources, and programming to the school starting in the fall.

"The PAL program is working on getting that established with us at no cost to the school, which is absolutely incredible," Nuccio says. "We don't have anything STEM-wise like that at the moment. We do have amazing science teachers, and we have a lot of cool stuff going on, but that STEM program will be a really incredible addition.

"It's been an amazing partnership," she adds. "This year has just been a really awesome way to get things started, get Morgan and the PAL program integrated, and be able to start to explore the possibilities of what the partnership could mean. ... What I would love to see moving forward is just to continue on that path."