Foundation's $15 million gift to train police supervisors to help reduce gun violence
Hoping to reduce gun violence in Chicago, the Sue Ling Gin Foundation announced a $15 million gift Friday to develop a leadership and management education program for police supervisors.
The gift, which will be made to the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, will fund the new five-year program, working with the University of Chicago Crime Lab.
Slated to launch in January 2026, all Chicago Police Department supervisors — from sergeants to the superintendent — will participate in mandatory leadership training to be better equipped to solve crimes, connect with the community and prevent gun violence, according to Roseanna Ander, founding executive director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab.
'Policing invests almost nothing in the human capital of people who go into policing,' Ander told the Tribune. 'This is a huge leap forward in changing that and puts Chicago at the forefront.'
The new program builds on the 40 hours of required annual training for all officers implemented through a 2019 consent decree in the wake of the 2014 police shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. The management education will focus on effective leadership, data-driven analytics, officer wellness and building community trust. The curriculum will involve a mix of scenario-based and hands-on training, as well as classroom study, Ander said.
'As part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen safety and build trust across the city, we have to invest in the frontline supervisors who are managing day-to-day operations,' Chicago police Superintendent Larry Snelling said in a news release. 'We are deeply grateful to the Sue Ling Gin Foundation for its partnership and support in making this a reality.'
Like many large cities, Chicago saw a spike in crime during the pandemic, peaking at 804 homicides in 2021, mostly from gun violence. While the total declined to 573 last year, Chicago remained the city with the most homicides in the U.S., according to research from AH Datalytics, which tracks crime statistics.
Gun violence continues to be a major problem in Chicago, although statistics have been steadily improving in the post-pandemic landscape. There were 2,282 shootings in Chicago last year, down from 2,452 in 2023, according to CPD data. Gun violence is down 36% from 2021, when there were 3,554 shootings in the city.
Chicago entrepreneur Sue Ling Gin, who died more than a decade ago, has been posthumously fighting gun violence through her foundation in the city where she built her career.
The Aurora-born daughter of immigrants, Gin worked in her family's suburban Chinese restaurant growing up and later became a Playboy Bunny at the original Playboy Club in Chicago. In 1983, she launched Flying Food Group at Chicago's Midway Airport, building it into a network of 20 catering kitchens from Honolulu to New York, servicing more than 70 airlines. Gin also managed and developed an extensive Chicago-area real estate portfolio.
When she died in 2014 at age 73 after suffering a stroke, Gin left a sizable estate, which was used to fund her foundation.
In 2021, the foundation made its first major gift, a $21 million three-year donation to Chicago CRED, a nonprofit community intervention program that focuses on reducing gun violence in some of the city's most underserved neighborhoods.
The foundation's latest gift to fund police supervisor training will take a page from the business world where Gin proved so successful, according to Robert Hamada, former chairman of the Flying Food Group and the estate's trustee.
'Corporations do this kind of continuing education all the time, but government agencies are often unable to prioritize this kind of investment,' Hamada said in a news release.
rchannick@chicagotribune.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
American Military News
35 minutes ago
- American Military News
Pics: Dead Democrat congressman mysteriously still sending fundraising emails
Pictures shared on social media by a former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) informant show that fundraising emails are still being sent out on behalf of former Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who died last month from esophageal cancer. According to Connolly died in May at the age of 75. The outlet reported that the Democrat congressman's death came just weeks after he confirmed that his esophageal cancer had returned following 'grueling' cancer treatments since his initial diagnosis in 2024. Despite Connolly's death in May, Kamran Fareedi, a former FBI informant, has reported that the Democrat congressman's campaign is continuing to send fundraising emails to Connolly's supporters. READ MORE: Democrat governor vetoes bill limiting Chinese land near US bases Sharing pictures of the fundraising emails Fareedi has continued to receive from Connolly's campaign following the congressman's death, the former FBI informant tweeted, 'Why am I getting emails from @GerryConnolly's campaign AFTER he has passed away? Beyond unethical.' In another post, Fareedi wrote, 'For those unfamiliar, former Connolly campaign operatives are trying to coronate his former Chief of Staff as the successor to Connolly's congressional seat, who would probably hold the office and rule over Fairfax County constituents for the next few decades.' Fareedi claimed that a Democrat primary process is scheduled to begin in 'just 22 days at polling places that still haven't even been announced' and that whoever is responsible for overseeing the deceased Democrat congressman's campaign infrastructure is trying to use it to 'secure James Walkinshaw the nomination.' The former FBI informant shared a screenshot of one of the fundraising emails, explaining that each of the fundraising emails he received has ended with a paragraph regarding Connolly's death last month. The fundraising email noted that Connolly died 'after a courageous battle with cancer' on May 21. The email also stated, 'Before his passing, Gerry formally endorsed his longtime advisor, former Chief of Staff and current Fairfax County Supervisor James Walkinshaw, to succeed him in Congress and continue the work they began together.' A party run primary process is being held in just 22 days at polling places that still haven't even been announced. Meanwhile, whoever is controlling the @GerryConnolly campaign infrastructure is using it to try and secure James Walkinshaw the nomination. The emails end with: — Kamran Fareedi (@fareedi_kamran) June 6, 2025 Commenting on the continued use of the deceased Democrat congressman's fundraising infrastructure, Fareedi wrote, 'Seems incredibly unethical and disrespectful to the deceased.'
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Lawyers for R. Kelly claim wrongdoing by prosecutors, say imprisoned singer's life in danger
Lawyers for imprisoned R&B superstar R. Kelly claim they have uncovered evidence of government wrongdoing and that the Chicago-born singer's life is in danger. Kelly's legal team said in a news release Tuesday they will be filing an emergency motion in Chicago federal court documenting their allegations and seeking Kelly's immediate release from a federal penitentiary in North Carolina, where he's serving a 30-year sentence for sexual misconduct. The motion, the lawyers say, will be 'backed by concrete evidence and declarations that expose a disturbing pattern of government corruption and criminal misconduct' by federal prosecutors in Chicago and New York as well as officials with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The news release claims the officials unjustly manufacture charges against Kelly and are trying to cover it up. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Chicago could not immediately be reached for comment. Kelly's lead attorney, Beau Brindley, and other members of his office plan to hold a news conference outside the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago this afternoon. Kelly, 58, was convicted in 2022 in Chicago of child pornography for making explicit videos of himself and his then-teenage goddaughter, who testified at trial under the pseudonym Jane. He also was convicted of inappropriate sexual relations with Jane and two other teenage girls, 'Pauline' and 'Nia.' The jury acquitted Kelly and two co-defendants on charges they conspired to retrieve incriminating tapes and rig his 2008 trial by pressuring Jane to lie to investigators about their relationship and refuse to testify against him. Kelly was also found not guilty of filming himself with Jane on a video that jurors never saw. Prosecutors said 'Video 4? was not played because Kelly's team successfully buried it, but defense attorneys questioned whether it existed at all. Brindley represented Kelly's former manager, Derrel McDavid, in that case, but has since been hired by Kelly. Meanwhile, Kelly was also convicted in federal court in New York in 2021 of racketeering conspiracy charges alleging his musical career doubled as a criminal enterprise aimed at satisfying his predatory sexual desires. He's serving his time in a medium-security federal prison facility in Butner, North Carolina, and is not eligible for release until the year 2045, records show. Kelly also has a pending lawsuit against the Bureau of Prisons alleging a former employee leaked his jail calls and other information to a video blogger. jmeisner@
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Chinese national with University of Michigan ties charged for smuggling bio material into U.S.
University of Michigan | Susan J. Demas A citizen of the People's Republic of China was arrested and charged with smuggling concealed biological material into the U.S. from a university in Wuhan, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan announced Monday. The arrest of Chengxuan Han, who is currently pursuing a doctorate degree from the College of Life Science and Technology at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China, is the third such arrest in the last few weeks related to smuggling of biological agents into the country involving the University of Michigan. 'The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China — to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory — is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security,' said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Jerome Gorgon Jr. in a statement. 'The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions.' Han is alleged to have sent four packages with concealed biological material to the U.S. in 2024 and 2025. The packages were addressed to people associated with a laboratory at U of M. The U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers apprehended Han on Sunday after she arrived at Detroit Metro Airport on a J1 visa. Officers inspected Han and noted that Han made false statements about the packages and the material she had previously shipped to the U.S. The content of an electronic device Han possessed was deleted three days prior to her arrival in the U.S. this week, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Han was next interviewed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, during which Han admitted to sending the packages and that they contained biological material related to round worms. She also admitted to making false statements to CBP officers during her initial inspection. 'The FBI has zero tolerance for those who violate federal law and remains unwavering in our mission to protect the American people,' Cheyvoryea Gibson, special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office, said in a statement. 'The alleged smuggling of biological materials by Chengxuan Han is a direct threat to public safety and national security, and it severely compromises the integrity of our nation's research institutions.'' The Detroit News reported that Han was the third Chinese national with connections to U of M charged with a federal crime in the last two weeks. The FBI recently charged student Yunqing Jian and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, for attempting to smuggle biological pathogens into the country, which the agency said could be used as an agricultural terrorism weapon affecting food crops.
