KCKCC launches ‘Blue Crew’ to support student sports

by Kelly Rogge

Kansas City Kansas Community College is offering students, faculty and staff a way to show their Blue Devil spirit while supporting student athletes at the same time.

The Blue Crew is a new group that is being started this year as a way to not only build community support for KCKCC athletics, but to also start the formation of a Student Section at sporting events. Andrica Wilcoxen, outreach and prevention coordinator at KCKCC, said it is a way for students and faculty to get involved with activities.

“The idea of the Blue Crew is to develop a Student Section at our games, where everyone wears the same shirt,” she said. “It’s really showing the school spirit we have here.”

There are a number of benefits to those who register for the Blue Crew. These include being eligible for free events before and after sporting events and being entered into free giveaways. While these will be available for everyone, there will be a fee associated with these activities that Blue Crew members will not have to pay.

“This is the first time that I know of that we have done anything like this,” Wilcoxen said of the Blue Crew. “We really want the Blue Crew to be an experience. We want these students to have such a good time that they will want to continue that level of involvement as they move onto another college experience.”

Wilcoxen said the Blue Crew is also an opportunity for students to promote positive attitudes during sporting events.
“Being a member of the Blue Crew helps promote responsibility among our students,” she said. “It gives them a positive experience here where they are able to be responsible for what they say and do.”

T-shirts for the Blue Crew are $5 for students and $10 for employees. For more information on how to purchase one, contact Wilcoxen at 913-288-7439 or by email at awilcoxen@kckcc.edu.

Citizens’ police academy class learns more about the KCK Police Department

Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Ellen Hanson spoke to the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)
Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Ellen Hanson spoke to the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)


by William Crum

The citizens’ police academy learned more about the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department recently.

The first visitor to the class was interim Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Ellen Hanson.

“We want the public to be informed and involved, by doing so we have programs like this,” she said. “This is why the crime rate in Kansas City, Kan., has decreased. We are constantly going out to various neighborhood groups and informing them of what’s going on. I don’t know how many times I’ve met with various groups and have informed them myself.

“Regarding the recent development with the school situation here, we still have a lot of full-time officers still in the schools until the new school security takes effect. We plan to work together,” she said.

“By the end of the year there should be a new chief of police in effect,” Chief Hanson said.

The other visitor to the class was Municipal Judge Maurice “Mo” Ryan, who spoke to the group about what goes on in the Municipal Court. He talked about what is criminal law. He mentioned what a felony is, a misdemeanor and what are traffic infractions. He also spoke about various laws that affect the court from the state level.

He also spoke about the scheduling within the Municipal Court itself, which was highly informative. At the end of his speech he answered various questions about the Municipal Court.

At the end of the class members were shown a video called “Heroes Behind the Badge.” This documentary showed a lot about what police officers have to go through, and many of them face death and danger.

“We are a lot like teachers,” said Sgt. William Barajas of the Kansas City, Kan., police training academy. “We do the job because we like it. Granted, things can be tough. However the rewards are endless in the long run. This is what we’re about, helping people.”

Municipal Judge Maurice “Mo” Ryan addressed the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)
Municipal Judge Maurice “Mo” Ryan addressed the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)

Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Ellen Hanson spoke to the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)
Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Ellen Hanson spoke to the citizens’ police academy class recently. (Photo by William Crum)