No one is coming to save US: a grassroots, community-centered approach to reducing gun violence in allentown, pennsylvania is a trauma-informed, whole-family community violence intervention (CVI)…

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (CFDA 16.045 Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative) awarded a $1,995,400 Project Grant to Promise Neighborhoods Of Lehigh VAL Ley, a non-profit community development organization based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The grant will fund a 3-year initiative to implement a trauma-informed, whole-family community violence intervention (CVI) approach to reduce gun violence among high-risk individuals and their families in Allentown. The key activities include: 1) co-designing a targeted gun violence reduction strategy with local stakeholders; 2) delivering intensive case management, mental health treatment, and healing-centered supports for individuals and families impacted by gun violence; and 3) documenting the project design, implementation, and lessons learned to inform continuous improvement and share with peer communities, researchers, and policymakers.

No one is coming to save US: a grassroots, community-centered approach to reducing gun violence in allentown, pennsylvania is a trauma-informed, whole-family community violence intervention (CVI) effort to reduce gun violence among individuals at the highest risk for community violence who have committed and/or are the victim of gun violence and their family unit. The primary objectives are to: 1) CO-design a targeted strategy to reduce gun violence among individuals at highest risk in allentown with context experts (directly impacted by gun violence) and local organizations (education, health care and hospitals, mental health, youth development, city government, criminal justice, law enforcement); 2) implement a trauma-informed, family-centric CVI model to treat individuals and families at highest risk with intensive case management from credible messengers; low-barrier, long-term mental health treatment; and healing-centered supports for children of individuals involved in gun violence; and 3) document the project design, implementation and lessons learned to inform continuous improvement and share learning with peer communities, researchers, policy makers, and funders. Promise neighborhoods of lehigh valley (pnlv) will convene the zero gun violence allentown collaborative, conduct a needs assessment in partnership, and produce a strategic action plan. To enhance existing programming, pnlv and its sub-awardees (lehigh valley health network, preventive measures LLC, and the boys and girls club of allentown) will design and test an intensive case management and healing-centered service model that centers the individual and their family.