SCLife Coach

The Institute for Nonviolence Chicago’s mission is to end the cycle of gun violence in Chicago using Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s principles and teachings of nonviolence. Informed by a philosophy of nonviolence, Nonviolence Chicago will establish caring and sustained relationships with participants engaged in the cycle of violence. We will emphasize partnerships with community members, leaders, social service providers, and local law enforcement to reduce community levels of violence.

We will help create a safer, healthier environment for young adults, youth, and their families. These general approaches will be specifically addressed using five major methods:
Community Violence Intervention (CVI) / Street Outreach, Individualized Service Provision, Victim Support Services, Behavioral Health and Nonviolence Training.

Scaling Community Violence Intervention for a Safer Chicago (SC2) is an innovative public‑private initiative uniting practitioners, philanthropy, business and government to implement and test new approaches to addressing violence in seven Chicago communities experiencing high levels of violence. Through collaborative coalitions, SC2 strengthens access to five integrated and evidence‑based services in full‑implementation communities:
Street Outreach, Case Management, Behavioral Health, Education and Employment.

The Institute is serving as the hub for the SC2 initiative in the Austin community. The SC2 Austin Collaborative came together under SC2’shypothesis that if at least 75% of individuals in the Austin community at highest risk of violence are reached, then there will be fewer shootings and homicides and, through spill‑over effects, the overall environment of physical safety will change.

This unprecedented level of coordination, alignment, and investment in direct service provision to the highest risk individuals in Austin is a five‑year initiative which started in 2024.

Reporting to the Manager of Support Services, the SC2 Life Coach works directly with high‑risk individuals in the community and accompanies them as they navigate the challenges associated to current or past involvement with the criminal justice system, work to establish a healthy and stable lifestyle, and overcome barriers to accomplishing their professional goals. This position not only provides services and resources to help achieve established goals, but also uses first‑hand knowledge of the community to develop and maintain meaningful and effective relationships with participants, responds in the community as crises arise and draws out participant motivation to reach his/her potential.

The SC2 Life Coach models prosocial behaviors and successful interpersonal relationships, provides the accountability necessary to achieving established goals, and mentors participants as they receive supportive services and attend court dates. As such, this role is a critical component of the long‑term success of the SC2 Austin Collaborative.

This position may also be a member of a Violence Prevention‑Community Support Team (VP‑CST), an innovative effort to provide trauma‑informed therapeutic interventions to individuals who have experienced chronic exposure to firearm violence. VP‑CST teams are comprised of an outreach worker, life coach and clinician.

• Utilize first‑hand knowledge of the community and street conflicts to develop and maintain supportive and effective relationships with participants
• Using a trauma‑informed approach, provide support, resources and accountability to a caseload of 20 participants at minimum
• Coordinate and…