Albany Park / Irving Park Violence Prevention Grant Program

Cydney Wessel is ICJIA’s American Rescue Plan Act and Violence Prevention Program manager. Prior to joining ICJIA, Ms. Wessel was the DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau, Inc., executive director. Ms. Wessel spent 25 years working for the Healthy Families America (HFA) program, an internationally recognized, evidence-based, in-home family support program. She was instrumental in ensuring HFA was designated as a proven and effective model by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services leading to a nationwide expansion of services through the federal Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program. Ms. Wessel earned a master of social work with a focus on child and family therapy and administration at the University of Wisconsin Helen Bader School of Social Work and a master of business administration at Florida Gulf Coast University.

In 2013, the Community Violence Prevention Programs Youth Employment Program (YEP) offered job readiness training, mentoring, and summer employment to approximately 1,800 youth participants in 24 Chicago-area communities. The evaluation of YEP was designed to guide programmatic enhancements and funding decisions. Researchers used multiple surveys of program staff and participants in order to obtain feedback on trainings for participants, the employment component, mentoring component, and general program operations. The program met its goals of increasing job readiness skills; building relationships between youth and a caring adult; increasing youth productive time and community engagement; and improving the community through community service.

Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (Authority) researchers conducted an evaluation of the Community Violence Prevention Program’s (CVPP) Parent Program. The program, which ended August 2014, sought to increase protective factors to reduce child maltreatment by employing and training nearly 1,000 Chicago-area parents to lead service projects to help other parents in 20 communities. The Center for the Study of Social Policy stated that effective parenting programs to prevent child maltreatment attempt to improve parent understanding of child development and teach child management (2003). In addition, those that are parent-led promote parental resilience and inter-parent connections.Authority researchers analyzed multiple surveys of more than 3,500 staff and participants, as well as administrative data to obtain feedback on training and general program operations.

Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority researchers conducted an evaluation of the Community Violence Prevention Program’s (CVPP) Parent Program. The program, which ended August 2014, sought to increase protective factors to reduce child maltreatment by employing and training nearly 1,000 Chicago-area parents to lead service projects to help other parents in 20 communities.

In 2013, the Reentry Program, one of three components of the state of Illinois Community Violence Prevention Program (CVPP), provided services to youth and young adults on parole in 12 Chicago communities to help them transition back to their communities and reduce recidivism. ICJIA researchers conducted an exploratory study though interviews with the programs case managers to learn how the program operated and make recommendations to change and enhance the program.

In 2013, the Parent Program component provided 1,010 parents in 21 Chicago-area communities training and then coordinated their participation in community service projects. The Parent Program is one of three programs offered through the Community Violence Prevention Program (CVPP). Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) researchers used administrative data and developed four surveys to evaluate the Parent Program and answer key research questions. These included a training evaluation survey, a pre- and post-survey (given at the beginning and end of the program), and two exit surveys.

Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority researchers conducted an evaluation of the Community Violence Prevention Program’s Youth Employment Program. The program, which ended in August 2014, sought to increase job readiness skills, build relationships with a caring adult, improve attitudes toward employment and violence, increase self-esteem and conflict resolution skills, and offer community service and engagement.

The Bullying Prevention Grant Program funds schools or youth-serving organizations to implement and evaluate evidence-based bullying prevention programs in K-12 school settings.

The Lake County States Attorney Office will adapt the public health approach of the Cure Violence model to address gun violence in Lake County. This model uses disease control methods to stop violence through: 1) Identification and detection of individuals and scenarios that need to be addressed; 2) Interruption, intervention, and risk reduction of the violence by interacting with the individuals who cause violence; and 3) Change behaviors and norms with those individuals.

The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority is requesting proposals for grants for the Albany Park/Irving Park – Violence Prevention NOFO. A grant will be made using SFY23 funds. A total of $180,000 in funding is available through this solicitation for use over a period of 3 months.

Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority researchers conducted an evaluation of the Community Violence Prevention Program’s (CVPP) Parent Program. The program, which ended August 2014, sought to increase protective factors to reduce child maltreatment by employing and training nearly 1,000 Chicago-area parents to lead service projects to help other parents in 20 communities.