Classes for kids mix karate with nonviolence

Kris Hill

Saturday, Dec. 9, 2000 | 10:05 a.m.

The Police Athletic League program run by Dominick Rodriguez has grown so popular since it began in June that he plans to offer it at a third site.

A Metro Police officer, Rodriguez runs the PAL full time. Six months ago, he began offering summer programs at the Whitney Recreational Center off Boulder Highway. Karate and basketball were among the programs.

Rodriguez works with two other Metro officers, Andrew "Bo" O'Neal and Freddy Garcia. O'Neal is the site coordinator at Whitney while Garcia works out of the Twichell Recreation Center. In January, Ann Lynch Elementary School will host the third site.

Rodriguez, who describes his work as helping at-risk youth, sees the program as crime prevention, as an opportunity to steer children toward positive goals.

Rodriguez, a 12-year veteran cop, goes back and forth to each site, teaching karate and overseeing the programs that run for a few hours after school Monday through Thursday at both recreational centers.

Rodriguez said the idea is to keep the children out of trouble after school.

The Police Athletic League was developed 70 years ago by a police officer in New York who wanted to do something for children who had nothing better to do but harass neighbors.

"My mom thought it was a good idea," karate student Diana Monroy, a seventh grader, said about Rodriguez's program. "It keeps us out of trouble."

Monroy and the other youths learning karate may not have had a chance to learn the martial arts if it wasn't for the Police Athletic League.

The program is free to the children. The officers' salaries are paid by the department. Other costs are paid for by grants and money from the private sector.

Shortly after the school year began, Rodriguez added the Cultures of Peace, similar to the anti-drug DARE program, to his classes. But Rodriguez said it goes beyond drugs and alcohol. Students involved in Cultures of Peace also learn about gangs, guns and violence.

Students involved in the program can also take advantage of homework tutoring or participate in peer mediation training. Last month a boxing class was added to the offerings at Twichell, Rodriguez said.

Youth involved in the program love it, especially the karate students.

Griselda Contreras, an eighth grader, loves Jackie Chan movies and has always wanted to learn karate. She has been in the karate class since September, and she now thinks she could defend herself if someone attacks her. Contreras also participates in Cultures of Peace.

Monroy pointed out the balance of the program that offers both the Cultures of Peace curriculum and karate.

"I think Cultures of Peace teaches you how to defend yourself without violence," she said. "But karate helps you defend yourself in case that doesn't work."

Monroy also acknowledged other benefits of the program. It's a good way to keep healthy and exercise, she said.

Contreras has picked up more than a few karate moves since starting the class. Rodriguez gave her a nickname, Brazos -- which means arms in Spanish -- because she is tall and wiry and has long limbs.

Rodriguez has tried to teach the youth about more than sports and issues surrounding violence. He has made an effort to teach them about giving back to the community, he said.

Once a semester the children do what Rodriguez described as a give-back -- an opportunity for the children to help others. The first give-back event he coordinated -- a road cleanup during the summer -- didn't draw as many of the youths as he would have liked.

"So we told them that you can't always take, take, take," he said. He told the children they had to start giving back.

This semester Rodriguez coordinated a turkey giveaway and the children put together Thanksgiving baskets for needy families.

He had to turn children away who had shown up to help because there was only so much room in the building where the baskets were being assembled and in the vans used to deliver the baskets.

"Our turkey giveaway was hugely successful," Rodriguez said.

Next week he will hand out awards and certificates to every child who has participated in the program. He hopes the ceremony Friday at the Whitney Center will contribute to his efforts to increase the children's self-esteem.

After the ceremony, the children will take a break from school and the Police Athletic League, while Rodriguez and his partners prepare for the next semester of the program.