For the last couple of years, Ames and ISU Police Departments have been working hand in hand to set a stage where they can cordially interact with the student community of ISU over a variety of topics. Every year, both departments come up with a different theme such as donut disrespect and free coffee to engage with the Iowa State community.

Community engagement is essential, and we acknowledge both police departments for their initiative to engage with ISU student community for expanding student’s awareness on different critical issues on campus, such as sexual assault awareness as they did last year.

Community engagement is fundamental and emphasizes the communal participation to highlight, discuss and provide feedback to address critical issues affecting the community. Community engagement aims to vigorously involve the public to attain longstanding and workable outcomes, developments, relationships, decisions and their enactment. It is one of the critical strategies that extends the scope from a detached community to public discussion that ensures that equal consideration is being paid to all members of diverse communities in order to improve their prosperity.

The primary goal of this community engagement exercise at the campus is to revitalize the virtue of being respectful with others and abstaining from hate, harassment and discrimination.

Besides ISU police, such rapports also provide a chance for Ames Police to build a stronger relationship with the campus while interacting with several new international students to help to break the widespread stigmas about the U.S. police.

Community engagement provides participants with a two-way communication platform to highlight and talk about issues directly with each other to devise workable solutions in a dynamic setting. An energetic involvement of our diverse students’ community in this communal exercise can provide authorities with a broader outlook and balanced understanding of students’ views on different campus-related issues that can help law enforcement agencies in making wise decisions to address immediate concerns of the community.

Moreover, active participation of students in such engagements can build trust and develop a sense of community ownership among students. Participation of students from diverse backgrounds can provide an insight into the fears and concerns that underrepresented groups have on campus so the authorities can solve those proactively.

On the other hand, non-involvement in community engagement can develop a sense of powerlessness that can pose damaging effects on the well-being of our community.

In short, community engagement is vital, and students must become involved in such participation so that there can be improved outcomes for our community. Active involvement of ISU students in Ames police-led community engagement programs can make everyone in the community feel like they are working for and with one another, not against each other.