Keys Alliance

The Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa (CST) Student leadership Program is known as the KEYS (Keeping Every Youth Safe) Alliance. KEYS is supported by a partnership between Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa, Inc. and Tangipahoa – Reshaping Attitudes for Community Change or TRACC. This program serves youth ages 13-18 in Tangipahoa parish’s public, private, and parochial middle and high schools (approximately 5,000+ students). The program is offered free to any students who would like to participate and comply with the ideals set forth in the program. The program provides opportunities for young teens related to education, life skills, leadership skills/relationship development, youth safety, and prevention advocacy. The program is founded in the belief that youth can make responsible decisions when provided with factual information and an opportunity to develop an understanding of one’s self and motivations. The relationship with Crime Stoppers provides them with a safe, secure, anonymous way to report information through a variety of technological means. The program promotes school and community spirit and pride, and a positive campus and community image to students. Understanding this, the program provides an opportunity for youth to learn the facts about safe driving, drugs, alcohol, bullying, internet safety, crime in their community and schools, and much more. With this knowledge they are given the opportunity to meet people and other youth in their communities that share the same ideals. As a group they participate in raising awareness on various issues facing today’s teens by hosting events, participating in health and safety fairs and events, and advocating to their peers. They learn competence, confidence, responsibility, connectivity and how to be productive members of society through advocacy and service. This past year and current year’s primary focus has been on teen driver safety including but not limited to distracted driving, seat belt safety, impaired driving, and following the rules of the road. The skills learned through this program will relate to all aspects of their young and adult lives and will benefit the future of our community as a whole long term.

The KEYS Alliance acts as a prevention (not therapy) program for youth to offer a variety of resources on safety, healthy life styles, leadership, communication skills, and an opportunity to meet other people in their communities who share the ideals of a safe, drug free, and crime free life.

Objective 1: Youth act as change agents in their communities by working on campaigns in their schools and communities such as National Teen Driving Safety Month, Celebrate My Drive, Red Ribbon Week, Crime Prevention Month, Celebrate Safe Communities, National Teen Driver Safety Week, and others.

Objective 2: Youth go beyond just saying “No” to embrace a more complete and effective strategy to prevent harmful/unsafe/violent behavior and promote healthy communities.

Objective 3: Youth can safely report issues in their communities and schools anonymously without fear of retaliation; this program encourages the development of responsibility to themselves, their schools, and their communities. They participate in a valuable extracurricular activity, while they benefit from a reduction in incidents on campus and enjoy an increased dense of security in their schools, homes, and neighborhoods.

Purpose & Impact: Youth that decide to say yes or no to an issue are influenced by their environment, including social norms, media messages, accessibility, and laws, rules, and policies. When youth become involved in efforts such as these, they not only help their community; they help themselves grow into productive members of society. All things considered, we would rather have an anonymous good student citizen, who can safely report crime solving or preventative information, or advocate to their peers on various issues, than a grieving school and community following a violent or needless tragedy on campus or in their community that could have been prevented had there been a program in place.

KEYS QR Code to Application