Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish Co 3/23/2017

City of Everett Human Needs Grant January 1 through December 31,2017 Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County Children's Program EXHIBIT A: Program Summary DVS's Children's Program aligns with the City of Everett's Human Needs Priorities: Youth. The Program directly supports children and youth who have been exposed to domestic violence in their homes by providing them with housing and food assistance at DVS's emergency shelter as well as counseling and guidance provided by the shelter children's advocate. The program provides specialized parenting education and support services to their non-offending parents around the issue of domestic violence and addresses the abuse/neglect many of these children have experienced as a direct result of the domestic violence in their homes. DVS also operates a Dating Violence Prevention Program, providing educational presentations to schools and youth-serving organizations throughout Snohomish County. (1)The objectives of the Children's Program: • Support and advocate for children and youth who have been impacted by domestic violence, • Lower the risk of future violent behavior and other effects of domestic violence for these children and youth, • Educate children, youth, parents, and professionals in the community about ways to intervene in and prevent domestic violence. (2) Program Components and Structure: First and most important children and youth are provided safety in a protected shelter environment where they receive advocacy and support, nutrition, medical care, and other services as needed. • counseling and therapeutic activities for children and youth aimed at enhancing their self-esteem, helping them deal with and appropriately express their feelings of anger and fear, and teaching them social and safety skills. These activities take place both in one-on-one sessions between a child/youth and a staff advocate and in DVS's Youth Center where children/youth can come on a drop-in basis for group activities, guided play, homework assistance, and support • support groups held for children and youth. The age appropriate curriculum covers topics such as safety planning, defining abuse, and safe/unsafe touch, identifying and expressing emotions, self-esteem, and conflict resolution. • field trips and activities are planned for children and youth to relieve stress, learn social skills, and just have fun. • parenting education and information and referral, through structured parenting groups, one-on-one consultation, and modeling age appropriate non-physical discipline techniques. • school liaison,to ensure that children in DVS's Emergency Shelter and Supportive Housing programs are attending school and receiving appropriate school-based services. • domestic violence prevention programs in schools aimed at raising awareness about the causes and effects of domestic violence and offering interventions and behavioral alternatives to abuse. • professional training to service providers, teachers, childcare providers, medical and criminal justice personnel as requested. • systems advocacy (advocating for improvements in policies and procedures used by service providers and the justice system), accomplished through work with groups such as the Snohomish County Child Fatality Review Board, Human Services Council, Snohomish County Domestic Violence Coalition, Homeless Child Care Advisory Board, WA State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, DSHS Region 3, and CPS Child Protection Team. (3)Who is served — DVS's Children's Program target population is children and youth from birth to 18 years of age who have been impacted by domestic violence, and their non-offending parents. The direct services listed above are currently provided to children and youth and their mothers residing at DVS's Emergency Shelter and in the Supportive Housing program. Groups for children and youth in the community are currently offered in Everett, 1