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Statewide Conference on "Gangs: Impacting Everyday Lives" At Arapahoe Community College on May 18

(April 23, 2007 – Littleton, Colo.) According to Arapahoe Community College Criminal Justice Chair Christine Swenson, “Gang violence is at an all time high, not only in the United States as a whole, but growing in our own backyard of Colorado. Additionally, gang membership is increasing at an alarming rate.” In response, the Colorado Association of Criminal Justice Educators (CACJE), a group to which Swenson belongs, has dedicated their upcoming annual statewide conference to this topic.

The conference, dubbed, “Gangs: Impacting Everyday Lives,” will be hosted by Arapahoe Community College from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 18 in the ACC Main Building at 5900 South Santa Fe Drive in Littleton. CACJE invites anyone from across Colorado who has an interest in addressing the state’s expanding gang program to participate in this conference. The conference will delve into the problems of gangs and gang violence from all sides. Additionally, the conference will provide practical information that can be taken back to communities, schools, and agencies of the conference participants to better equip Colorado to face this increasing challenge. Explains Swenson, “When it comes to gangs, trends that develop in California soon move eastward to Colorado."

"This should concern us because in California gang penetration has reached nearly 100 percent of that state from the suburbs to the countryside and the growth trend there is sobering." Swenson adds, "In 2003, there were an estimated 10,000 gang members in the southeast Los Angeles area. In just four years that number has more than doubled to approximately 22,000 members.”

“Gangs: Impacting Everyday Lives,” will feature a presentation from a real-life gang member. This presenter will educate participants on the lifestyle of a gang member. The keynote speaker of the conference is Troy Eid, U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado. Eid will take participants on a journey into the world of gang prosecution.
The conference will also feature a panel presentation of law enforcement and criminal justice professionals from across Colorado discussing gang investigation, victimization, prevention and intervention strategies.

The cost to attend the conference is $75 for CACJE members and $100 for non-members. Students may attend at a deeply discounted cost of $20. For more information contact Christine Swenson, at 303.797.5980 or e-mail Christine.swenson@arapahoe.edu, or Stacey Hervey, at 720.423.6644 or e-mail her at Stacey_Hervey@dpsk12.org.

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