Violence Prevention and Intervention Masters

Casa Central was founded in 1954 by a multi-denominational group of churches to provide social services to Chicago's growing Latino population. Since then, Casa Central has evolved from an organization with three employees and a $26,000 budget to a nationally recognized agency with over 500 staff members and an $11 million budget.

In 1987, the agency opened the doors of its Domestic Violence Intervention (DVI) program. DVI provides crisis intervention, supportive group and individual counseling, psychoeducation, information and referral and safety planning services to adults experiencing domestic violence. The Casa Central Safe Start program began in 2007. Safe Start provides services to children under the age of 6 and their families who have been impacted by exposure to violence in their homes and communities.

The program targets communities on Chicago's west side and is part of a statewide network of similar sites, providing Safe Start/Safe From the Start services to young children and families.

The DVI and Safe Start programs comprise the agency's Violence Prevention and Intervention (VPI) programs. VPI has three main areas of focus:

* To increase community knowledge about the impact of violence on young children, individuals, families and communities, as well as increase awareness of violence prevention and intervention resources through providing trainings for parents, community members, and early childhood professionals,

* To provide accessible, culturally sensitive, and developmentally appropriate supportive and therapeutic services for young children and families exposed to violence, and

* To build and maintain a dynamic coalition comprised of stakeholders in Chicago's west side neighborhoods for the purpose of collaboration, resource-sharing, and development of a coordinated community response to violence.

VPI is a relatively small, but vibrant and growing, department. Its staff includes one full-time Program Director, one full-time Safe Start Therapist, one part-time Program Assistant, one full-time Family & Community Service Coordinator, and three full-time Therapists who primarily work with families who are involved with the child welfare system. We rely greatly on our interns, who provide valuable and much-needed services to our clients and the broader community.

Internship Specifics

The internship placement is designed for second-year masters-level students in social work, counseling, or a related discipline. The ideal intern will be self-motivated and engaged in his/her own learning process. Preference is given to students who are bilingual (English/Spanish) and who have already completed a certified 40-hour domestic violence training. A specific interest in working with young children and their families, and/or in violence- and trauma-related issues is helpful.

Interns will be required to complete a certified 40-hour domestic violence before the end of the first semester (and, ideally, prior to beginning their internship experience); if this training is not completed, students will not be permitted to continue their direct clinical counseling work with clients. Any costs incurred related to the training are the intern's responsibility, but hours spent in the training will be counted as practicum hours.

All interns will also be expected to participate in in-service trainings at the agency related to domestic violence, child abuse, child development, and children's exposure to violence.

There are several opportunities for interns to complete the 40-hour domestic violence training. Some options are listed below; students are also encouraged to explore other options and review them with the Program Director prior to enrollment (a relatively comprehensive, and typically current, listing of available 40-hour trainings is available online at http://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below).). Please note that 40-hour trainings tend to fill up very quickly;

advance registration is strongly encouraged.

* Apna Ghar (training held at the Bridgeview Bank Building, 4753 North Broadway)

Cost: $175 for students (with valid student ); $75 for Casa Central-affiliated students due to a networking agreement

Contact:
Sanjna Das, , ext. 243

* Between Friends (training held in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago)

Cost:$250; free for individuals who commit to volunteering at least 2 hours per week with Between Friends for a minimum of one year

Contact:

* CAWC (Connections for Abused Women and their Children) (training held at the CAWC Offices, 1116 North Kedzie)

Dates:
Fall, Winter & Spring, over the course of 7 Saturdays

Cost: $250; free for individuals who commit to volunteering at least 4 hours

per month with CAWC for a minimum of one year

Contact:
Megan Rosado, , ext. 22 or mrosado

* Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women's Network (training held at the Network offices, 1 East Wacker, Suite 1630)

Cost: $150 for interns at Network member agencies

Contact: or visit http:// for registration information

* Community Crisis Center…