INSTITUTE FOR NONVIOLENCE CHICAGO
STREET OUTREACH AND CONFLICT MEDIATION
Our outreach team builds strong relationships with those at highest risk of becoming involved in violence and other key members of the community to defuse and deescalate conflicts. Using a combination of data and experience, outreach workers know who to approach, where and when to show up, and how to broker peace.When a shooting happens, within thirty minutes of hearing about it, our outreach workers are on the streets, working to prevent retaliation and support those in crisis. Our approach to ending violence is hyper-local, restorative, trauma-informed, and rooted in principles of nonviolence.
For more information about Street Outreach, please contact Samuel Castro, Director of Community Violence Intervention @ (630) 710-0004 or samuelc@nonviolencechicago.org.
VICTIM SERVICES
We’ve spent enough time on the ground witnessing violence to understand that suffering doesn’t end when a shooting is over—and pain doesn’t only affect the victim. Our victim advocates work with victims and their families, helping them get the support and services they need and walking with them through the anger and grief that often sparks retaliation.
Whether they are dealing with issues related to injury, medical systems, law enforcement, trauma, financial pressure, or physical therapy, we’re here to help victims with whatever they need to move them along the healing process. As with all of our programs, advocates focus on building trusting relationships with clients so that they can help victims transform their pain into a strong voice against violence in their community.
Join our Grief and Survivor Support Group. If you live in Austin, Back of the Yards, or West Garfield Park and are interested in this monthly group, please call Behavioral Health & Wellness Coordinator, Jordan Whealdon @ (312) 350-4510.
For more information about Victim Services, please contact Les Jenkins, Victim Services Program Manager @ (773) 350-4508 or lesjnonviolencechicago.org.
HOPE (Helping Our People Excel)
HOPE introduces participants to mental health supports, increasing motivation to change and ultimately resulting in a referral to additional needed services. The HOPE program is a unique partnership between our street outreach and reentry teams which allows participants to receive intensive mentorship and nonviolence training, while establishing their personal safety, developing pro-social behaviors, maintaining basic daily norms, and achieving self-created goals. As such, HOPE is a critical precursor to more formal services and the long-term goal of employment in the legal economy.
Some of the topics covered in the HOPE curriculum include the principles of nonviolence, cognitive behavioral intervention (CBI), conflict mediation, and restorative justice.
Hear from the graduates of our first HOPE cohort.
For more information about HOPE, please contact Artimmeo Williamson, Reentry Supervisor @ (312) 270-5114 or artimmeow@nonviolencechicago.org.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
The Institute for Nonviolence Chicago job readiness program prepares participants with the skills, tools, and techniques to obtain, keep and excel at a new job. Participants will develop communication, problem solving, resume building, interviewing, and soft skills.
Tools participants utilize are based on a Social Emotional Learning (SEL) approach which will allow the participant to understand their emotions, maintain positive relationships and make responsible decisions. Curriculum components include:
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Self-Awareness - Recognizing one's emotions and values as well as one's strengths.
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Self-Management - Managing emotions and behaviors to achieve ones goals.
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Social Awareness - Showing understanding and empathy for others.
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Relationship Skills - Forming positive relationships, working in teams, dealing effectively with conflicts.
For more information on Workforce Development, please contact Marlena Jentz, Vice President of Operations & Strategic Partnerships @ (773) 682-4967 or marlenaj@nonviolencechicago.org.
CASE MANAGEMENT AND REENTRY
Violence isn’t in our DNA. And those involved in violent acts don’t have to be violent forever.
Case Managers provide individuals with the support and services they need to stay safe. Case managers work with participants to individualize services to meet their self-identified needs and goals, including providing positive behavioral supports, mentoring and counseling, housing referrals, job readiness training and placement services and, as needed, referrals to more intensive external services like substance abuse prevention and treatment. Case management is an integral part of the long-term sustainability of peace in a community. Nonviolence Chicago recognizes people need alternatives to the violence and assistance in accessing and staying engaged with those alternatives.
We also offer reentry services for those returning to our community from incarceration. Case managers work to connect with individuals while they are still incarcerated so they have a person and place they know they can connect with when they are released. We are hopeful this will decrease recidivism while dramatically increasing resiliency and possibilities for a meaningful life.
Watch highlights from our most recent graduation, and hear how Reentry 2.0 impacted the lives of our participants.
For more information about Case Management and Reentry Case Management, please contact Marlena Jentz, Vice President of Operations & Strategic Partnerships @ (773) 682-4967 or marlenaj@nonviolencechicago.org.
Violence isn’t in our DNA. And those involved in violent acts don’t have to be violent forever.
At the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago, safety and progress are our main goals for our clients who have been involved in violent crimes. Our case managers help clients find the support and services they need to make positive changes by coaching and mentoring clients, identifying what they need to succeed, and helping them set goals for a brighter future.
Safe school and work environments are an important part of our clients’ journey to move away from violence. We do as much as we can to make learning a positive experience for those who may have found school to be a hostile environment in the past. For clients old enough to work, we offer job readiness training and placement services. By providing safe spaces for those trying to move forward, we hope to help them learn to make spaces safe for others.
For more information about Case Management, please call Shannon Barr, Program Manager of Victim Services and Case Management @ (773) 417-7421 or shannonb@nonviolencechicago.org.
NONVIOLENCE TRAINING
The Institute for Nonviolence Chicago offers training about the principles and practices of nonviolence established by Martin Luther King, Jr. in order to build and strengthen the communities of peacemakers that partner with us in the fight against violence. Kingian Nonviolence workshops teach that peace happens with open dialogue, forgiveness and reconciliation. We provide trainees with the knowledge and skills they need to engage in peaceful problem solving. All trainings are open to youth and adults who want to gain conflict mediation skills and promote nonviolence in their own beloved communities. We can tailor these trainings to particular groups and times ranging from 1 hour to 20 hours.
For more information or to host or attend a Nonviolence Training, please contact Jimi Orange, Director of Training and Education @ (773) 520-8375 or jimio@nonviolencechicago.org.
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH & WELLNESS
In 2021, Nonviolence Chicago completed our strategic planning process. One of the most important findings was the need to address staff health and wellness or to heal our healers. Thanks to a grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, we created our new Behavioral Health and Wellness program. This program serves a dual purpose— to increase staff wellness and resiliency against the impact of trauma, which will in turn increase staff’s capacity to provide in-house behavioral health and wellness services directly to participants.
Nonviolence Chicago prioritizes creating a culture of health and wellness for our staff and the participants we serve.
For program details and updates, click here.
For more information about our Behavioral Health & Wellness program, please contact Kelly Carroll, Associate Director of Behavioral Health & Wellness @
(312) 833-0354 or @ kellyc@nonviolencechicago.org.
