Project Grant H79TI088930

The Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded the Chicago Recovering Communities Coalition (CRCC) $350,000 on September 30, 2026, under the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment Projects of Regional and National Significance program (CFDA 93.490).

CRCC will expand peer recovery support services (PRSS), professionalize the peer workforce, and implement recovery-ready workplace infrastructure across five high-burden West Side Chicago community areas over three years, with engagement extending to Central Illinois through the Sangamon County Recovery Oriented Systems of Care. The project targets adults in recovery from substance use and co-occurring disorders navigating trauma, justice involvement, and housing instability in a catchment area accounting for 34 percent of citywide opioid-related emergency medical services responses.

The project team includes a project director (50 percent FTE), a project coordinator (100 percent FTE), project office support staff, and two peer specialists delivering direct recovery coaching and workforce transition support. Helios Recovery Services LLC provides contracted training and technical assistance. Marie Di Bianco, MSW, of White Oak Innovators serves as the independent program evaluator. CRCC's referral network—including Thresholds, Gateway Foundation, Healthcare Alternative Systems, and Garfield Counseling Center—ensures transitions to medication for opioid use disorder-affirming clinical care.

The project applies four evidence-based practices: motivational interviewing, the stages of change model, the CCAR curriculum, and SAMHSA's peer competencies paired with trauma-informed care. Work is performed in Chicago, Illinois, with a period of performance from September 30, 2026, through September 29, 2029.