Hayward will pay tribute to the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a program of music and song, poetry, community-award recognitions, a keynote address by Chief of Police Toney Chaplin and other activities starting at 4:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, 2023, at Chabot College Performing Arts Complex.

 

The program is sponsored by the Hayward South Alameda County NAACP, Chabot College, Hayward Unified School District and the City of Hayward and will feature performances by the Mt. Eden High School Choir, Hayward High School Jazz Band and Brett Harte Middle School Slam Poets. Keynote speaker Chaplin is the first African-American leader of the Hayward Police Department. 

 

For more information on the annual Hayward Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration—including how to reserve a seat for this free event—go online here on the City of Hayward website.

District 2: How long have you been a member of the Alameda County Probation Department and what inspired you to work in this field? 

Brian Ford: I have worked for the Alameda County Probation Department for four years. I spent the first 16 years of my career working for the Los Angeles County Probation Department. I grew up primarily in South Central Los Angeles and Compton. I attended Jefferson High School in LA, where I would often see a school-based Probation Officer walk around campus connecting with various students that were on his caseload – many of them I knew. This Probation Officer was also a coach at the high school. What initially got my attention was the fact that he had a career that allowed him to serve in two distinct roles that seemed to complement one another. I saw how impactful he was in both roles, as well as how much respect he garnered based on how he treated people. I quietly admired him and that’s what ultimately inspired me to pursue this career path.  

D2: What’s the most rewarding part of being a member of the Alameda County Probation Department? 

BF: Every part of my job is rewarding. There is a famous quote that says, “If you follow your passion, you will never work a day in your life.” I am very passionate about this field of work. Working for the Probation Department gives me an opportunity to do so many things that bring me fulfillment, both personally and professionally. Service is one of my personal core values, and this agency gives me a chance be of service each day, and I find that extremely rewarding.  

D2: How do you define success in your career? 

BF: Success in my career is defined as the ability to make a living doing a job that I am genuinely passionate about. 

D2: What advice would you give to someone who wants to enter your field? 

BF: If you are passionate about service, and can approach this work from the perspective that we partner with people to help them achieve success, then this would be a great field for you to consider.  We have very talented people in our line of work, and there is always space for more empathy, understanding, and compassion in our field. We need people with great communication skills, who understand how to work with and motivate people. If an individual fits this profile, I would recommend they begin volunteering with a local Probation Department to learn more about the various opportunities that exists. Probation Officers serve in various capacities and having an understanding of the various roles could certainly broaden someone’s perspective of what they would have an opportunity to do in this field.   

D2: What’s one thing either industry-related or not you learned in the last month? 

BF: I recently learned how much fun virtual reality can be. My daughter got a Quest last year for her birthday and she never really play with it. So, I decided to give it a try and it opened up a whole new world that I didn’t know existed. Admittingly, it made me feel a bit out of touch with the younger generation. But it was certainly something new and exciting for me to explore. 

D2: What are you most proud of in your career so far?  

BF: When you work in human service, there are many proud moments that you get to experience over the course of your career. I have many stories of successfully helping people turn their lives around to developing and implementing programs to address a systemic inequity. But what I am most proud of is the investments I have made in the growth and development of other people, that have ultimately become respectable leaders in this field. I have always led with the notion that I can be most impactful in this work by raising up other leaders, who can in turn, further the mission of being of service. I have made it a point to have this be a part of my legacy, and this is what I am most proud of.  

D2: From your perspective, what element(s) are important for successful juvenile justice prevention programs? In other words, what would you like to see youth get out of programs Probation supports.  

BF: It’s been my experience that youth need to be given opportunities to explore – art, music, literature, history, science, trades, etc. The teen and young adult years are when people are generally trying to find their way in the world. It’s not always easy to identify what you are passionate about, skilled in, or interested in becoming. It’s through the various programs that we support that I would like youth to gain exposure to these opportunities. Successful programs understand positive youth development, and find creative ways to speak to young people’s interest. I would like to see more of our programs find ways to engage youth in untraditional ways, include the family structure, and be more flexible with the days and times in which they offer services.   

D2: What are the best tools and skills to equip the youth and adult clients to lead successful, crime free lives?  

BF: There is a lot of research in our field that outlines what it takes to help clients live crime free lives. It starts with investing in the communities in which they live. When communities are cared for, safe, healthy and thriving, it produces an environment that fosters success. At the individual level, it starts with motivation – people that abstain from crime are generally motivated to do so. Next, is skill development and application. Cognitive skill development, like the ability to reason or problem solve in difficult situations help clients manage in their environments, which are often challenging to thrive in. Hard and soft skill development is also key so that clients can use those skills to gain employment and maintain it. Finally, basic needs like housing, food, medical care, transportation, etc., also need to be addressed. These elements collectively are what help people lead successful crime free lives.  

D2: As assisting Chief of the Alameda County Probation Department what is your vision to continue achieving positive outcomes for justice-involved individuals?  

BF: Probation has always been a field where we were seen as brokers of services – meaning we connect people to the services and supports they need. This still holds true for our field, but I also think there is an opportunity for us to have an expanded role. The populations we serve today have needs that are increasingly more complex to address. Given that, I think we need a different training model, that focuses on providing direct treatment, healing, trauma support, and mental health. We need this training to be given at an intensity that equips our staff with the skill necessary to address the complex needs of our population directly. The vision is to have a workforce that is properly trained at addressing the 21st century needs of our clients with minimal use of incarceration as solution to ensure public safety.   

D2: In your leadership position how will you continue to position the Alameda County Probation department as a nationwide leader in Community Corrections?  

BF: I think we position ourselves as a nationwide leader by continuing to trust the science, data and research on what works to change behavior and ensure public safety. If you look across this state, as well as this nation, Probation is applied differently from one place to another. The research is clear about what works in changing behavior, but many agencies struggle with trusting and/or applying it. I think we set ourselves apart by successfully being able to do both – trusting and applying the research, while building and testing new models thereby continuing to innovate.   

D2: What is your favorite hobby? 

BF: Since middle and high school, I’ve been into producing music and playing sports. Those are the two things that keep me going – and I still do both, recreationally. 

D2: What is the last book you read? 

BF: The Theory of Aligned Contributions, by Dr. Jolie Pillsbury. It’s a short book that outlines a theory that if certain factors and conditions are present across human service systems, positive population level changes can occur. It causes the reader to think about how one can make measurable changes in a population’s well-being through this simple framework, if appropriately applied.