Crime is a cycle. Burleigh County Sheriff Steve Berg said it is not uncommon for the children of people who have gone through the legal system to be arrested.

"We want to try to stop the negative behavior early," Berg said.

One way the Burleigh County Sheriff's Department is trying to do this is by bringing the CounterAct Program to rural and private schools in the county.

CounterAct is a series of five one-hour courses taught to fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders. The program teaches students about drugs, alcohol, violence and other dangerous or illegal behavior.

"We really try to get them thinking about consequences," Berg said.

He said students need to know their decisions affect their future.

"What students often don't think about is that if they get into trouble now, it can cause problems when they go to apply for a job or join the military," Berg said.

CounterAct was taught in the late 1990s before taking a few years off. It was brought back in 2003.

Berg said public schools inBismarck have access to resource officers from the Bismarck Police Department, so the Sheriff's Department concentrates on the other schools.

CounterAct was started in 1989 by the Hazelden Foundation, which creates programs for drug and alcohol education and prevention. It focuses on four main steps to handling difficult situations: Check out the situation, talk about possible consequences, suggest possible actions and follow through on the decision.

"We really want them to know they have control," Berg said. "We tell them to remember they're in charge of their decisions and they can always come to us (law enforcement.)"

Officers go through a class to become certified to teach CounterAct. The Burleigh County Sheriff's Department has 10 certified CounterAct officers.

Those officers visit the schools and conduct the courses on a schedule that works for the teachers. They have freedom to discuss issues important to individual classrooms and cater the course to each group.

"CounterAct isn't as regimental as some other programs," Berg said. "We encourage officers to discuss current events with students and talk about issues going on in a given community."

Berg said the cost of the CounterAct Program is worth the investment.

"We don't have much cost for supplies, so it's mostly just the cost of the officers' time," he said. "It will save us money in the end when less young people are being arrested."

The CounterAct Program also shows children how advertising affects them.

"We try to turn negative influences from the media around," Berg said.

Aside from teaching students valuable lessons, Berg said CounterAct allows officers and students to get to know each other.

"It let's them know officers are approachable," he said.

CounterAct also teaches students that they can get into trouble by being a part of illegal activity, even if they are not the person doing it.

"We want students to know they can be affected not only by the things they do but also the things others do," Berg said.

Berg said CounterAct targets fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders because they are at an open-minded age.

"At that age, they're starting to experience a lot of things," Berg said. "And we want to get to them before they reach high school."

Apple Creek School principal and teacher Charlotte Knittel said her students enjoy CounterAct and learn a lot from it.

"I like that every student has a chance to be involved," Knittel said. "And parents get involved, too, which is great. It's important to have that back-up at home."

Knittel said students are eager to participate in CounterAct.

"They're willing to speak up and ask a lot of questions," she said.

The final of the five courses is a parents' night in which the students act out skits to show what they've learned. They are then presented with certificates of completion.

Berg said CounterAct also has helped parents open up to law enforcement.

"They seem to like to see our involvement at the schools," he said.

Berg said the officers' involvement at the schools doesn't end when the CounterAct courses are complete.

"We encourage officers to stop by the schools when they're out patrolling the county," Berg said. "It's neat to stop in and have the kids greet us."

Berg said he wants to get officers out to each rural and private school in Burleigh County at least once every three years to be sure each student is reached once.

During the 2005-06 school year CounterAct will be presented at Naughton School, Apple Creek School, Theodore Jameson Elementary, Prairie Rose School and Sterling Elementary.

"We are looking at going to other schools if we have time this year," he said.

Berg said ultimately he hopes CounterAct keeps Burleigh County youth on the right track.

"So many times in law enforcement we have to be reactive and this gives us a chance to be proactive and use preventative law enforcement," he said.

(Reach reporter Katie Brown at 250-8225 or katie.brown@;bismarcktribune.com.)