Police Community Outreach is an effort to engage with community members proactively, and not in a reactionary way. Outreach is an important part of community policing, which is defined by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics as “a philosophy that promotes organizational strategies, which support the systematic use of partnerships and problem-solving techniques between the police and the community.

Community policing and outreach focus on the conditions that can cause issues for public safety. Police departments partner with community members and get to know them, but they also work with social agencies and service providers in the community to develop relationships and engage with the people they serve. There are several important and more specific goals of this community approach to policing:

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• To create more opportunities for police and community members to engage in positive ways

• To build relationships and trust between police and community members

• To develop greater understanding between police and members of a diverse community, including refugees

• To provide greater transparency for the community about what police do

• To reduce crime rates in communities

• To protect police officers