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BOSTON – Thursday,
September 30, 2021 – Mayor Kim Janey, the Office of Health and Human
Services (HHS) and the Office of Public Safety (OPS) today announced the
six awardees for the COVID Recovery Violence Intervention Grant. This grant
is a one-time funding opportunity that will be awarded to community-based
violence intervention programs for the highest risk youth and young adults in
Boston, in low-income neighborhoods with high rates of community violence.
The COVID Recovery Violence Intervention Grant’s goal is to address the
health disparities in the communities hardest hit by the pandemic, through
funding community violence intervention programs in areas that experience
disproportionate levels of violence.
In total, the COVID
Recovery Violence Intervention Grant will distribute $600,000 to the six
Boston nonprofits that best detailed their goals of expanding opportunities
for police or gang involved youth, ages 13 to 24, that reside in
neighborhoods where violence has persisted or escalated during the
pandemic. This funding will be used to complement an additional $400,000 in
supporting Street Outreach, Advocacy and Response (SOAR) Boston and the
Safe and Successful Youth Initiative (SSYI), key programs in Boston's
evidence-based approach to reduce recidivism, intervene in violent
activity, and create pathways for active, gang-involved youth and young
adults in the city. This funding is available through the American Rescue Plan Act.
“It’s the duty of
every one of us to ensure a bright future for our children - and that
starts with promoting safety, justice, and healing on our streets today,”
said Mayor Janey. “I applaud these awardees for the work they’ve already
done to protect youth in our communities and to address inequities in
healthcare. I know this funding will strengthen the efforts to help our
City’s vulnerable children and teens.”
The COVID Recovery
Violence Intervention Grant has prioritized applicants with staff capacity,
organizational history, and violence intervention strategies that will
successfully deliver the desired outcomes of this grant. By prioritizing
high-need communities, the City can ensure an equitable recovery for all
Boston residents. The awardees are as follows:
·
Inner
City Weightlifting
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ICW's
mission is to amplify the voice and agency of people who have been most
impacted by systemic racism and mass incarceration. They partner with
program participants through case management and careers in and beyond personal
training. It’s a culture and community in which power dynamics are flipped,
social capital is bridged, and new leaders emerge in the fight to combat
long-standing inequities.
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ROCA
Boston
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Roca’s
mission is to be a relentless force in disrupting incarceration, poverty,
and racism by engaging the young adults, police, and systems at the center
of urban violence in relationships to address trauma, find hope, and drive
change.
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Boston
Uncornered
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Boston
Uncornered redirects the entrepreneurial, networking and leadership skills
of gang involved youth from violence and incarceration to obtain a college
credential and family-sustaining wage—driving positive change in our
neighborhoods.
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Youth
Options Unlimited
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YOU
empowers young people from court-involved or at risk backgrounds to succeed
in the workforce, in the community, and in their lives.
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Youth
Connect
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Youth
Connect is an innovative and unique program of Boys & Girls Clubs of
Boston (BGCB) that provides violence prevention, intervention, advocacy and
mental health services to young people who are involved in the criminal
justice system and their families.
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BMC’s
Violence Intervention Advocacy Program (VIAP)
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Helps
guide victims of community violence through recovery from physical and
emotional trauma. Using a trauma informed model of care, VIAP empowers
clients and families, facilitates recovery by providing services and
opportunities.
“This funding is
critical in mitigating the effects of COVID-19 on the violence intervention
programs helping our communities,” said Chief of Boston’s Health and Human
Services, Marty Martinez. “This grant will help build up and expand the
services for our youth to thrive financially, emotionally and physically.”
“As we continue
working towards an equitable recovery from COVID-19, the safety and well
being of our youth is of the utmost importance,” said Director of Public
Safety Dr. Rufus Faulk. “This funding is crucial in the strengthening of
youth serving Boston non-profits that are both working to keep our young
people safe and building towards a brighter and more equitable
future.”
For more information
about the COVID Recovery Violence Intervention Grant, please visit here.
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