Pontiac Community Foundation is invested in supporting meaningful, strategic community change. PCF was approached by both Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan (CFSEM) and Oakland County to discuss a recent grant opportunity focused on innovations in community policing. In discussions with key stakeholders, Pontiac Community Foundation has identified a project that has the potential for a meaningful impact on policing in the community. Pontiac, similar to at least 20 communities in Oakland County, utilizes a contractual relationship with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office with a specific Pontiac-based substation. The most recent contract was signed in 2019 and expires in December 2021 and has not rapidly changed over the years of implementation nor is there capacity at the city level for meaningful assessment of the contract. However, Oakland County Sheriff’s Office has been open to implementing areas the Pontiac community is interested in, such as additional community policing.
PCF’s innovations in community policing project will focus on steps to “Reimagine Public Safety” as a means to develop creative ways to engage police in the community. This grant will be collaborative with the City of Pontiac and Oakland County Sheriff’s Office through the Sheriff Relations Team and would focus on understanding and assessing the current contract, developing meaningful community engagement, and identification of recommendations for what new areas could be implemented for the City of Pontiac in policing (i.e. youth engagement, mental health, etc.). Learn more about the Community Policing Innovations initiative here.
