Local High School Student's Project Shows Police Officers In Different Light
NORTHBORO (CBS) - Algonquin Regional High School junior Mark Howells says he dreams of becoming a police officer. "Ever since day one I wanted to be a police officer," Howells said.
As part of his Video Production class he was asked to do a short documentary on a profession that matters to him. Mark immediately knew exactly what he wanted to do. "I went to Mr. Clarke and wanted to do a video project on police officers in the city," Howells said.
With all the disturbing cases and charges of police abuse throughout the country, Mark decided to approach the subject differently. "My project was to shed some light on the good that you don't hear about. And to humanize a police officer and not make them more like a robot," Howells said.
His YouTube video project centered around Officer Jeremy Trefry, a detective on the Northboro Police Department and the resource officer at Algonquin Regional High School.
"People typically see a police officer with a badge and gun and that's it. They don't realize we have family and friends and personalities," Detective Jeremey Trefry said.
Mark really wanted to get his message across, so he posted his project on his Facebook page and got a lot of incredible responses from police departments all over the area. "Their responses were phenomenal. They liked it," Howells said.
Mark doesn't deny there is an issue with police and the public trust. "When a police officer does something wrong it makes all police officers look bad," Howells said.
Mark wants his video to highlight the protection police provide to the public. "Mark's message was to show the human side of police officers and he's interested in overcoming stereotypes and that's very important," Mark's teacher George Clarke said.
Mark says he hopes to one day achieve his dream. "I still like helping people. I hope to become a police officer and make a difference in people lives in a positive way," Howells said.
