By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – The Alabaster Police Department will look to empower kids to avoid and escape potentially dangerous situations during a series of classes this summer, and is encouraging parents to register their children now.

Alabaster police will host the radKIDS training, which stands for resisting aggression defensively, from June 8-12 and from June 15-19. The classes will be separated into two separate age groups: One for kids ages 5-7 and another for kids ages 8-12.

The free classes will run Monday-Friday, and will not exceed 90 minutes for children ages 5-7 and will not exceed two hours for kids ages 8-12.

“It’s basically empowering kids to make the right choices and teaching them how to get away from dangerous situations,” said Thompson High School resource officer Ryan Hand, one of the class instructors. “It will cover other things too, such as home safety and what to do in the event of a fire. It teaches them to develop a plan.

“Every kid needs this kind of training,” Hand added.

According to the radKIDS program, 797,500 children are reported missing each year, 165,000 children per day stay home from school fearing bullying and violence and one child is abused or neglected every 35 seconds.

“A typical child molester will abuse 30-60 children before they are arrested,” read a post on the Alabaster Police Department Facebook page.

To register for the free classes, contact Thompson Intermediate School and Sixth Grade Center student resource officer Nat Parker at Nat.parker@alabastercityschools.org or contact Hand at Ryan.hand@alabastercityschools.org.

The class times and locations will be sent to registered participants at a later date, according to the police department.