By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
CASSOPOLIS - “Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Michigan,” a statewide crime prevention non-profit organization led by more than 350 of Michigan's best-known police chiefs, sheriffs, prosecutors and crime survivors - honored state Sen. Ron Jelinek, R-Three Oaks, and state Rep. Rick Shaffer, R-Three Rivers, with its “Crime Fighter” award Thursday night at the Cass County Intergovernmental Forum at the Council on Aging.
Members also discussed prevention investments with the lawmakers in the school aid budget and in the Department of Human Services budget that can help children succeed in life.
Cass County law enforcement leaders include Sheriff Joseph Underwood, Prosecutor Victor Fitz, Undersheriff Rick Behnke, Dowagiac Police Chief Tom Atkinson, Pokagon Band Tribal Police Capt. Mike Jungel, Cassopolis Police Chief Frank Williams and Edwardsburg Police Chief Ken Wray.
Underwood, a member of the Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Michigan executive committee, presented the awards on behalf of the members, saying, “We are pleased to convey the Crime Fighters award to Sen. Jelinek and Rep. Shaffer for their outstanding leadership on after-school policy development, their support to restore funding for high-quality preschool and their work to preserve funding in several budgets last year for child abuse and neglect prevention.”
Underwood added, “Sen. Jelinek's efforts last year allowed greater access to early childhood education and care programs by expanding the eligibility for the state-funded preschool program. This year, he supported a 10-percent increase in the program to provide 3,000 more at-risk 4-year-olds to a quality preschool program proven to dramatically reduce crime.
The sheriff told the group of local elected officials and law enforcement officials that Jelinek, a former teacher, also sponsored an amendment to create the Michigan After-School Partnership that helped the state leverage $325,000 in private funds from the Mott Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The partnership is developing a statewide network to insure access to after-school programs for every school-age child in Michigan. It is an example of a public-private partnership that is working to better serve our families and children.
Underwood observed, “(March 29) Sen. Jelinek's amendment was passed by the Senate to put “placeholder” language in the school aid budget to develop the interagency statewide competitive after-school program. In addition, Sen. Jelinek has consistently supported child abuse and neglect prevention, and, yesterday, supported doubling the investment in the budget to increase family functioning through parent education to prevent child abuse and neglect, keep families together and help kids to be successful so that they stay out of the court system.”
Underwood said, “To decrease the need for foster care placements and more funding for child protective services, we need to first prevent child abuse and neglect.”
In Michigan in 2004 there were more than 29,000 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect.
Nationally, the best estimate of the real number of children abused, neglected or even killed is likely much higher.
During the last three years, almost 30 percent of funds for abuse and neglect in the “0-3 Secondary Prevention Program” administered by the Children's Trust Fund were eliminated, even though studies show that being abused or neglected multiplies the risk that a child will grow up to be violent.
Both lawmakers were recognized for their work together to better utilize taxpayer dollars citing Shaffer's work in the House to complement Jelinek's Senate work to pass and maintain the statewide competitive after-school program - currently funded by the Department of Human Services at $5 million - and the Michigan After-School Partnership to create a network for public and private after-school providers across Michigan.
Underwood said, “The interagency approach exemplified by these programs not only allows agency staff to have greater communication, it places Michigan in a better position to leverage more program monies from the federal government and private foundations.”