Jeff Benson opened the meeting with the Pledge and invocation.
 
Our guests today were: 
Coon Rapids Rotarian - Margie Rash
Bill McReavy
New Brighton's finance director and Dean's guest - Brenda Davitt 
Prospective member - Winie Bradford
 
Don't forget the Foundation Celebration this Saturday, November 7th, 5:30PM at the Holiday Inn East, St Paul.
 
Todd Kruse announced a holiday food drive to benefit area food shelves.  Our club will join the TC North Chamber to provide food for those in our community who don't have enough this holiday season.  Rotary will collect food and help pack food bags at the Ralph Reeder Food Shelf as we have done in the past.  The Chamber will be hosting a Holiday Charity and Awards Luncheon on Thursday December 10th, from 11:00AM to 1:30PM, at the New Brighton Community Center.  The luncheon is free, but tickets are limited.  RSVP to Samantha Rubin - 763-571-9781.
 
Our Gold Plate Dinner has been scheduled for April 1st, 6:00PM.  Mark your calendars now!
 
Cindy Carlson updated us on our District Matching Grant for sanitation and handwashing stations at a school in Niger.  Thanks go to Cindy for her hard work on this grant.
 
Geoff Hollimon reported that he visited ECHO in Fort Myers, FL last week.  He had an opportunity to visit with board members and see the results of our contributions to this very relevant and worthwhile organization.
 
The Irondale choir will entertain us with a concert and Christmas Carol sing-along at our December 15th club meeting.  Guests are welcome but please let Jason Miller know if you will bring a guest so we can plan for enough food.  j.miller@smithschafer.com
 
Mike Neeley and Jeff Benson were blessed with the opportunity to put on the birthday hats to celebrate their advancing age.  Life just isn't fair!  See the photo below.
 
Jim O'Brien reported that his wife Maureen was diagnosed with cancer last week and that surgery was successful.  They will find out soon if chemo is needed.
 
Thanks go to MaryAnn for the delicious treats for today's meeting.  You are the Best!
 
Jeff introduced our speaker Bob Jacobson, New Brighton's Director of Public Safety.  Bob's topic was the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing.  Bob began his talk by describing a trend of decreased trust between peace officers and the public they are sworn to protect.  Recent events in Ferguson, Cleveland and New York City are the extremes, but they are indicative of the overall trend.  In response to this trend, President Barack Obama signed Executive order 13684, establishing the Task Force on 21st Century Policing.  The introduction to the task force's final report describes its mission: " to examine ways of fostering strong, collaborative relationships between local law enforcement and the communities they protect and to make recommendations to the President on ways policing practices can promote effective crime reduction while building trust."  Bob reviewed the six "Pillars" of the Task Force's recommendations.
Pillar One - Building Trust and Legitimacy  
>Law Enforcement should adopt the “guardian” vs. “warrior” mindset
>Police cannot be viewed as an occupying force
>Establish culture of transparency and accountability to build public trust
>Law enforcement should initiate positive non enforcement activities
>Should conduct annual surveys to measure levels of public trust
>Workforce encompass broad range of diversity
Pillar Two - Policy and Oversight
>External/independent investigations for officer involved shootings and/or in custody deaths
>Conduct peer reviews of critical incidents
>Establish civilian oversight mechanisms
>DOJ/COPS Office should provide technical assistance and funding to small agencies toward interagency collaboration, shared services and regional training
Pillar Three - Technology and Social Media
>Use of technology can build community trust
>Must have defined policy framework with defined purpose and goals
>Use of technology should improve transparency without infringing on individual rights
>DOJ should establish national standards for research and development of new technology
>Should consider local needs aligned with national standards
>Adopt model policies and best practices
Pillar Four - Community Policing and Crime Reduction
>Community Policing should be a guiding philosophy
>Law enforcement should work with community residents to identity problems and collaborate on solutions with meaningful results
>Engage in multi disciplinary, community team approaches
>Communities should support a culture and practice of policing that reflects the values of protection and promotion of dignity for all
>Develop youth in the community through positive police/youth collaboration and interactions
Pillar Five - Training and Education
>As the scope of law enforcement expands so does the need for expanded and more effective training
>Federal government should support the development of partnerships with training facilities across the country
>National post graduate institute of policing for senior executives
>Ensure licensing boards require training such as Crisis Intervention Training, disease of addiction, implicit bias, procedural justice, etc.
Pillar Six - Officer Wellness and Safety
>Emphasize support and proper implementation of officer wellness and safety
>Develop programs for financial support for law enforcement officers to continue to pursue higher education
>Encourage implementation of scientifically supported shift lengths
>Analyze not only officer deaths but “near misses”
>Tactical first aid training, ballistic vests for all, wearing seat belts
 
It bears noting that the New Brighton Police force had implemented most of these recommendations long before the Task Force was commissioned.  While Director Jacobson would be hesitant to brag; its's abundantly clear that his leadership and the professional attitude of his officers has made New Brighton's Police Department a shining example of community policing at its best.  Check out the N.B. Public Safety webpage here.  Bob and Dana are shown below.