AMB chapters receive a structured framework and tools for building productive relationships between local law enforcement and the youth they serve. This benefit provides MOU templates, joint programming curricula, and dialogue facilitation resources to bridge the gap between youth and police.
Since 1986, AMB has operated with a core belief: safe communities require both youth and law enforcement to see each other as human beings — not threats. Our police engagement programs are never punitive, never coercive, and never surveillance-based. They are built on voluntary participation, mutual respect, and structured shared activity. Officers who participate in the Midnight Basketball League Program™ do so as coaches, mentors, and guests — not enforcers. This distinction is fundamental and non-negotiable.
Official partnership agreement between your chapter and local law enforcement agency
A Memorandum of Understanding formalizes the relationship between your AMB chapter and the local police department, sheriff's office, or other law enforcement agency. It protects both parties, defines roles clearly, and ensures that the partnership serves youth interests. Many funders — especially OJJDP and DOJ — specifically require or give preference to programs with documented law enforcement partnerships. An MOU is your evidence.
This Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") is entered into as of [DATE] between the Association of Midnight Basketball, [CHAPTER CITY] Chapter ("AMB Chapter"), a licensed chapter of the national Association of Midnight Basketball nonprofit organization, and the [AGENCY NAME] ("Law Enforcement Partner").
The purpose of this MOU is to formalize a collaborative, voluntary partnership between the AMB Chapter and the Law Enforcement Partner to improve relationships between [CITY] youth and local law enforcement through structured, community-centered programming.
Under this MOU, the parties agree to coordinate the following joint activities:
The AMB Chapter will NOT share the following with the Law Enforcement Partner without express written consent of the individual participant: names, contact information, addresses, prior justice system involvement, or any other personally identifying information. All participant data is the exclusive property of the AMB Chapter and is governed by AMB National's data privacy policy.
This MOU is effective as of [DATE] and shall remain in effect for one (1) year, with automatic annual renewal unless either party provides thirty (30) days written notice of intent not to renew. Either party may terminate this MOU at any time with thirty (30) days written notice.
Always initiate the MOU conversation at the command level (Chief, Sheriff, Deputy Chief, or Community Affairs Captain). Mid-level officers cannot commit the department.
Bring AMB national and local impact statistics to your first meeting. OJJDP research, crime displacement data, and your own participant outcomes make the strongest case.
Ask the department to "review" the draft first, not sign it. This reduces defensive reactions. Most agreements are finalized in 2–3 review rounds.
Section V (data and privacy) is non-negotiable. No law enforcement partner should have access to participant data. This is an AMB national policy and protects your participants.
The one-year term with auto-renewal is intentional. It creates an annual check-in moment that can be used to publicize the partnership and document outcomes for funders.
AMB National has supported dozens of police partnership negotiations. If a department is resistant, contact compliance@midnight-basketball.org or amblpinc@gmail.com for support materials and referrals.
Four proven models for structured community events between youth and officers
The most visible and impactful joint event format. Officers and participants compete in a friendly basketball game, with coaches from both sides. Community members are invited as spectators. The game format naturally humanizes both groups through shared physical activity and competition.
A daytime community event co-hosted by AMB and the local police department. Service providers, healthcare organizations, employment agencies, and legal aid groups set up booths. Law enforcement participates as community members, not in enforcement roles.
Officers, detectives, EMTs, and firefighters speak to AMB participants about career pathways in public safety. This event reduces adversarial framing by presenting officers as professionals in a career, not as symbols of enforcement.
A voluntary one-on-one mentorship program pairing interested AMB participants with volunteer officers. Structured monthly check-ins, goal-setting meetings, and shared activities. Participants opt in; officers volunteer. No data sharing with the department.
6-module structured conversation program for AMB participants and participating officers
The AMB Youth-Police Dialogue Curriculum is a 6-module facilitated conversation series designed to be conducted over 3–6 months, with one module per program session. Modules alternate between youth-led and officer-led sessions, ensuring balanced power dynamics. Facilitators should be trained in trauma-informed facilitation. A neutral third-party facilitator (social worker, community organizer) is strongly recommended for the first run.
Youth-Led | 60 minutes
Participants and officers share personal stories — not roles or titles — in small groups. The goal is for each person to see the other as a full human being with family, struggles, and dreams before any conversation about policing begins.
Balanced | 75 minutes
A guided visual and discussion exercise about how perceptions are formed. Participants and officers each share their initial perceptions of the other group and where those perceptions came from (media, experience, family, school).
Legal Education | 90 minutes
A structured dual-perspective session on police stops. A legal aid representative covers participant rights during a stop. An officer explains what they're trained to think about and respond to during a stop. Both sides ask questions of each other.
Relationship-Focused | 60 minutes
An honest conversation about what actions by both sides damage trust — and what actions build it. No defensiveness, no blame — just structured sharing of experiences and proposed changes.
Solutions-Focused | 75 minutes
A collaborative session focused on co-designing safety in the community. Participants and officers work together to identify shared goals, acknowledge different stakes, and propose joint actions. This shifts the dynamic from adversarial to collaborative.
Closing Module | 60 minutes
The closing session of the dialogue series. Each participant (youth and officer) makes one personal commitment to the group for how they will act differently going forward. Commitments are written, shared aloud, and presented to both the AMB Chapter Director and the participating officer's supervisor.
A structured mutual immersion experience for AMB participants and officers
Unlike a traditional police ride-along (which can be surveillance-adjacent), the AMB Ride-Along Exchange is a mutual experience: officers ride on a shift with AMB staff to observe program operations, AND participants ride (in observational capacity) with officers to see a shift. Both exchanges are voluntary, debrief-structured, and designed to build empathy through direct experience. Neither party has authority over the other during the exchange.
A participating officer shadows AMB staff for a full program night — observing how the program operates, meeting coaches and counselors, watching workshops, and interacting informally with participants (who are aware of the officer's presence and role as guest/observer).
AMB Director briefs the officer: "Your role tonight is observer and guest. You are not here in an enforcement capacity."
Officer attends in civilian clothes or approved community dress. No weapons visible unless required by department policy and agreed upon in MOU.
Officer participates in one activity (warm-up, workshop, or scrimmage) at the invitation of participants.
Post-visit debrief with AMB Director: What surprised you? What will you take back to your colleagues?
An interested AMB participant (18+, voluntary, signed consent) accompanies a designated officer on a community-policing patrol shift. The participant observes the officer's work environment, responsibilities, and decision-making in real situations.
Participant is fully briefed by AMB Director: purpose, safety guidelines, their rights during the exchange, and that they may end the experience at any time.
AMB Chapter and Police Department sign individual ride-along consent/waiver for each participant.
Participant observes only — they do not participate in stops, arrests, or enforcement actions. They may choose to leave at any time.
Post-shift debrief with AMB counselor (not police): What did you see? How do you feel? What changed for you?
Eligibility: Must be 18 or older, voluntarily opt-in, and have no outstanding warrants. AMB staff confirm eligibility before enrollment. No participant is ever pressured to participate.
Required training for all officers participating in AMB programs
Any law enforcement officer participating in AMB programming — whether attending a game night, joining a dialogue session, or entering an officer mentorship pairing — is required to complete a 90-minute community engagement orientation delivered by AMB Chapter staff (and ideally a community partner). This orientation is not about law enforcement training — it is about community partnership norms, trauma-informed interaction, and the AMB philosophy.
Chapter Director introduces AMB history, mission, and the community this program serves. Why police partnership matters — and what it must not become.
Overview (no individual data shared) of the typical AMB participant profile: justice-involved history, educational barriers, housing instability, trauma exposure. Officers learn to see participants as whole people, not records.
Explicit discussion of officer role: guest, coach, community member — NOT enforcer. What this means in practice: no warrant checks, no plain-clothes surveillance, no data collection, no side conversations with participants about their records.
Brief introduction to trauma-informed communication: why some youth may react defensively, how to de-escalate, how to not trigger trauma responses during informal interactions.
Officers sign participation agreement confirming they understand and accept the AMB partnership norms. Questions answered by Chapter Director.
This agreement is signed by each officer before their first AMB program participation and renewed annually.