The Mission of the Harvard Police Department is to create a professional cooperative environment with the community to improve the quality of life for those we serve and protect by embracing the City of Harvard motto:  "Winning with Teamwork".

The Harvard Police Department is a full-service police department operating 24 hours every day. The Department currently has 25 employees who serve a community of 8,000 residents. To maintain the high quality of life and low crime rate in the City, the Police Department incorporates a comprehensive, pro-active approach to delivering police services. The Department serves the citizens of the community in a number of ways.

Uniformed patrol officers are responsible for protecting persons and property of the citizens of Harvard. Other duties and responsibilities include: enforcement of laws and ordinances; the prevention and investigation of crime and delinquency; the apprehension and detention of violators; and the preservation of order and related police services.

Bicycle Patrol Function
At some point in their career, officers are trained to patrol the City on a bicycle. The City has three bicycles that can be utilized for this function. Bicycle patrol has many advantages over traditional motorized or foot patrol. Bicycles can go more places than motor vehicles, get places faster than being on foot. They are less noticeable than their motorized counterpart. Officers on bicycles are more approachable to the public, allowing for greater community interaction.

 

Investigations
Harvard Police Officers assigned to Investigations are responsible for general case assignments. They are highly trained in the collection and preservation of evidence, interviewing and interrogating techniques, recovery of property, and ultimately the apprehension of offenders and preparing the case for a successful prosecution. They maintain a working relationship with other law enforcement agencies to gather and disseminate intelligence information. Investigators can be contacted by calling the non-emergency telephone number (1.815.943.4331)) or by e-mail at detectives@cityofharvard.org.

School Resource Officer
"School Resource Officer" is a program involving the placement of a uniformed law enforcement officer within the school system at all grade levels. It is designed to bridge the gap between police and young people. Its' purpose is to increase a positive attitude toward the police, as well as reduce juvenile crime by helping students' awareness of the rules, authority, and justice. The School Resource Officer is involved in a variety of functions. He is a visible, active law enforcement figure on campus dealing with law related issues. He provides instruction in law-related education, violence diffusion, safety programs, and alcohol and drug prevention. He is a member of the faculty and works with school administration to solve problems in the school. He is a resource to students, parents and teachers.

D.A.R.E. Program
D.A.R.E. stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education.  It is a drug abuse prevention education program designed to equip elementary, middle and high school children with knowledge about drug abuse, the consequences of abuse, and skills for resisting peer pressure to experiment with drugs, alcohol and tobacco.  Based on the premise that prevention is the only long-term answer to drug abuse, the program includes all 50 states and 53 countries.  The D.A.R.E. program help students in the prevention of substance use among our school-age children in the community. The D.A.R.E. program is taught in over 75% of the nation's school districts, creating a positive atmosphere for students to interact with uniformed law enforcement officers.

The unique program uses uniformed law enforcement officers to teach a formal curriculum to students in a classroom setting.  The new D.A.R.E. program is presented to fifth grade students once a week for 10 weeks long.  The session plans on four major areas:

1.  Providing accurate information about drugs, alcohol and tobacco.

2.  Teaching students good decision making skills.

3.  Showing students how to recognize and resist peer pressure.

4.  Giving students ideas for positive alternatives to drug use.

D.A.R.E. officers work with children to raise their self-esteem, teach them how to make decisions on their own, and help them identify positive alternatives to drugs.  Through role-playing, the D.A.R.E. curriculum emphasizes the negative consequences of drug use, and reinforces the skills to resist peer pressure and intimidation.

D.A.R.E. is a cooperative effort by the police, schools, parents and the community - all four working together to help our children make the right choices concerning drug use.  D.A.R.E. officers are assigned to a classroom "beat".  Gleaming with the latest in prevention science and teaching techniques, D.A.R.E. is reinventing itself as part of a major national research study that promises to help teachers and administrators cope with the thorny issues of school violence, budget cuts, and terrorism.  The need for an effective education program to inoculate students against the threat of drugs is critical to the well being of our children and their future.

Here are some tips for parents to help assist in working together to help our children in making the right decisions and choices regarding drug use.

• Establish family rules that make it clear that drug use will not be tolerated.
• Educate yourself about drugs, so you can talk informatively with your children and answer their questions.
• Spend time with your children listening to their concerns and showing how much you love and care for them.
• Recognize that  YOU are their most important role model.
• Because peer pressure is a major factor in teen drug use, know your children's friends.
• Talk with other parents.  Try to establish uniform rules that make access to drugs harder, such as curfew and the amount of spending money they receive.
• If a problem exists, get help!  Don't say "Not my child".
• Teach them about the many positive alternatives to drug use.

McHenry County M.I.A.T.
The Harvard Police Department is a member of the McHenry County Major Investigation Assistance Team. The mission of the Major Investigation Assistance Team (M.I.A.T) is to assist a member agency, at the request of that agency, who is involved in a major investigation by providing additional trained manpower and equipment.

Crimestoppers
The Harvard Police Department is part of the National Crimestoppers program. Anyone can call the Crimestoppers telephone number 1.815.943.4343) and give information anonymously about someone who committed a crime in Harvard. They will be eligible to receive a reward up to a thousand dollars ($1,000.00) for information leading to arrest and conviction. Crime information can also be sent by e-mail to crimestoppers@cityofharvard.org.

Civilian Employees
The Department employs civilian personnel to perform several functions. Dispatchers answer the telephones and screen these calls. They either direct the calls to another agency, resolve the callers' problem or dispatch a police officer to the call. It sounds pretty easy but it is actually very complicated. They go from a very boring atmosphere to an overly excited climate, all the time having to remain calm and focused on their responsibilities.

Police assistants are civilian personnel who do much the same work of a police officer. They take reports, write tickets and direct traffic among other things. However, they do not carry weapons. The reports they take are for situations that do not require a armed officer and they only write parking tickets.

Crossing guards are part-time civilian personnel that assist children across the street going to and from the school. For a list of times and locations where crossing guards are stationed, see the call-out box to the right.

Explorer Program
The Harvard Police Department through the Blackhawk Council of Boy Scouts, has an Explorer program for persons that are at least 14 years of age (that have graduated 8th grade) up to 21 years of age who have an interest in becoming a law enforcement officer. The Harvard Police Explorer Post 171 meets once or twice a month at the police station. The Explorers have their own uniform and can ride along with Patrol Officers. They will get involved in police-type activities such as fingerprinting programs, help out with barricades and traffic control at parades and be the McGruff Crime Dog in parades.