Pasadena Police Activities League Puts Tutoring and Other Programs Online

For more than 20 years, the Pasadena Police Activities League has provided tutoring and other after school programs, as well as guidance to local students. And while the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the closure of the organization’s meeting site, police officers and staff continue working with youths five days a week in a virtual setting.

Pasadena has taken part in the nationwide Police Activities League program since 1997, said Pasadena police Cpl. Cristian Allen, who serves as an adviser to the program. In that time, more than 3,500 Pasadena Unified School District students have taken part in the PAL’s after school programs.

In pre-pandemic times, PAL staff would pick members up from their schools and bring them to the meeting center at the Salvation Army at Walnut Street and Mentor Avenue, Allen said. Each day would begin with tutoring. “Tutoring and education have always been a major pillar for PAL,” he said.

After the school work was done, PAL members would take part in other activities ranging from sports and horseback riding to building robots, with support from other community organizations, Allen explained. The program continues over summer months when the league frequently takes field trips ranging from museums to amusement parks.

A yearlong membership costs $40, as the program is primarily supported through donations, with personnel and vehicles provided by the Police Department, organizers said.

Roughly 100 students are currently enrolled in PAL, with 20 or so logging in each week, Allen said.

Mondays and Fridays are reserved for one-on-one tutoring with one of PAL’s six youth advisers, according to the corporal.

Group tutoring is also offered Tuesdays through Thursdays, along with activities meant to be more entertaining, Allen said.

Recent activities have included science projects, like a rubber band catapult contest, no-bake cooking lessons, and art projects like creating dream catchers or tie-dyed face masks

Under a partnership with the organization STEAM:CODERS, “The kids are learning how to code and how to make their own video games,” Allen said.

And the Pasadena PAL is hiring.

The organization is looking for five youth advisers, who are most-often college students, Allen said. They must be at least 18 years old.

More information on the Pasadena PAL, including a link to donate to the organization, is available on the organization’s website, pasadenapal.com.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misstated the year the Pasadena Police Activities League formed. The article has been updated.