The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services has broadened its Domestic Violence Co-Location Program to reach Springfield and Belleville. This initiative brings local advocates directly into partnership with DCFS offices, providing on-site assistance to adult and child survivors of domestic violence. Designed to improve support and resources, the program’s expansion is set to benefit communities throughout central and southern Illinois. Officials say the collaborative approach will streamline services and ensure survivors have access to crucial advocacy and safety planning. The effort reflects a continued commitment to addressing the complex needs of families impacted by domestic violence statewide.
“Domestic violence affects adults and children from all walks of life in communities all across our state, and breaking the cycle requires wrapping families with a network of supports,” said DCFS Director Heidi E. Mueller. “The Domestic Violence Co-Location Program has been successful in helping parent and child domestic violence survivors remain safely together in communities in northern Illinois, and I am thrilled that we are expanding the program into central and southern Illinois. Through this partnership with the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence, The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence, Ascend Justice, Sojourn Shelter and Services and the Violence Prevention Center of Southwestern Illinois, more families will have access to the resources and support they need to heal and create safe and nurturing homes for their children.”
“Ascend Justice is proud to be a partner of the Domestic Violence Co-Location Program (DVCLP). We are thrilled that the DVCLP has been able to expand to a total of six sites across Illinois in all four DCFS regions, and we look forward to continued expansion that allows the DVCLP to serve the entire state,” said Sara Block, managing director of advocacy and partnerships, Ascend Justice. “Ascend Justice is grateful to the Family and Youth Services Bureau of the US Department of Health and Human Services for funding the expansion and evaluation of the DVCLP. Ascend Justice also appreciates DCFS for its commitment to this collaboration, the domestic violence agencies who directly carry out the work of the DVCLP and the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence and The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence for their dedicated contributions. Through the DVCLP, DCFS and the domestic violence community in Illinois have the opportunity to be a leader for other states in meeting the unique needs of children and families.”
“The Violence Prevention Center of Southwestern Illinois (VPC) is pleased to partner with Illinois DCFS and Ascend Justice to expand the Domestic Violence Co-Location Program (DVCLP) into St. Clair County,” said Darlene Jones, executive director, Violence Prevention Center of Southwestern Illinois. “This partnership between the VPC and the DCFS Belleville office will create a unique opportunity to build bridges between systems to keep children safe while supporting families so they can heal.”
“Sojourn is excited to collaborate with Illinois DCFS to expand the Domestic Violence Co-Location Program (DVCLP),” said Sojourn Shelter & Services, Inc. CEO Angela Bertoni. “Our staff is thrilled to provide domestic violence education to DCFS staff and serve as a link to direct services and advocacy for adults and children impacted by domestic violence in central Illinois.”
