McGruff Club
McGruff® Club is a crime prevention and safety education program for children who are between the ages of six and ten. Through McGruff Club, children become engaged in their communities and learn about safety while having fun with their friends and adults who care for them.
The National Crime Prevention Council created McGruff Club to educate children on what they can do to stay safe and prevent crime and violence in their communities. The program engages children in projects designed to make their communities safer.
The goals of McGruff Club are to
- Teach children about ways they can protect their personal safety and security
- Engage children in service projects designed to make their communities safer
- Raise children’s awareness of McGruff as a trusted source of information on how to stay safe from crime
- Teach children about what they can do to prevent crime and violence in their communities
- Foster positive relationships among children, law enforcement officers, and other community members
McGruff Club is for children between the ages of six and ten. Children meet once a week for 30 to 45 minutes. They spend meetings identifying safety concerns, learning how to stay safe, engaging in service projects, and reflecting upon and celebrating those projects. All children in McGruff Club explore the topics of safe and unsafe neighborhoods, conflict management, bullying, and dangerous situations in the neighborhood. McGruff Clubs address additional issues based on the concerns of the children, which may include diversity, Internet safety, guns and other weapons, and home safety.
Children who participate in a McGruff Club receive McGruff the Crime Dog® items, activity sheets, and safety letters from McGruff.
Adults who facilitate a McGruff Club receive a kit containing various publications and resources from the National Crime Prevention Council. The kit provides facilitators with the information they need to lead McGruff Club activities and engage children in service projects.
