The School Buzz: Peyton elementary school dodges cops with PLAY COS

Dodging the cops and having fun doing it – that’s what students did in Peyton recently.

Fifth graders at Woodmen Hills Elementary played dodgeball with officers from the Colorado Springs Police Department during recess recently. It was part of CSPD’s PLAY COS program developed by the department's community relations unit in 2021. The hope is that playing with students, through sports like dodgeball or football, will create more opportunities for positive interactions between police and the community.

“When you kick a ball back and forth or pass a football back and forth, relationships automatically build. You don’t even speak the same language and you make a connection," said Jason Newton with CSPD.

CSPD says they hope the PLAY COS program becomes a long-term, ongoing sports program that will be a permanent fixture between the department and the community. They already hold 25 PLAY COS events each year.

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