The Little Rock Police Department has received notice from the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), that it will receive a grant to add 20 new Patrol Officers. The new officers hired under this grant will be assigned to Patrol upon completion of their training. The addition of new officers to Patrol will allow experienced officers to be used to increase the LRPD's Community Oriented Policing Program, with an emphasis on targeting and preventing violent crimes. Experienced officers will also be placed in areas that will increase our PAL (Police Athletic League) and OK (Our Kids) mentoring programs which were originally started as pilot projects. The experienced officers filling the positions funded by this grant, will be provided with specific training on methods of interacting with neighborhood groups and encouraging young persons to engage in productive activities within the community. The grant is for a total of $3,043,680.00 and will be in operation for 36 months. The new officers are expected to begin the Academy in November, 2009.