About Officer Clarke

Officer James K. Clarke is assigned to the Northside Community Police Center full time. As part of the Community Policing Division, the Police Center's mission is to foster better relations between the community and law enforcement.

His primary duties include responding to police calls in the north side neighborhood, handling requests for service and cultivating partnerships with area businesses. He has developed a series of events that engage area youth and supporters in regular involvement with the police to build trust and a sense of community.

One of the most rewarding aspects of Officer Clarke's job is engaging area youth, agencies, businesses and other police officers in programs designed to build leadership skills as a means of improving the quality of life in Syracuse.

This was an outgrowth of training he received more than ten years ago when the Police Department sponsored his attendance at education hosted by Project Adventure, where he developed skills in team building, goal setting and staff development. As both a community policing strategy and a means of building strength within the Police Department, he was directed to transfer these skills to the Police Department and the community.

Since then, he has led hundreds of people through educational events while continuing to develop his own skills through the Project Adventure curriculum. At the Syracuse Police Department, he has led programs for the Mini Police Academy, Hostage Negotiation Team, Emergency Response Team, and others.

He has trained numerous youth from diverse groups including rural and urban middle and high school students, Native American nations, juvenile justice centers, church youth groups, college students, faculty and staff, private organizations, and more.