Social service agencies will partner with law enforcement to prevent gun violence

WILMINGTON, Del. – State of Delaware social service agencies will partner with law enforcement to prevent gun violence in the City of Wilmington under a Group Violence Intervention (GVI) project announced by state and city leaders on Tuesday.

Governor John Carney joined Wilmington Mayor Michael Purzycki, Attorney General Kathy Jennings, Wilmington Police Chief Robert Tracy, and Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) Secretary Kara Walker to announce their shared commitment to launching the evidence-based GVI strategy in Wilmington.   

Evidence shows that gun violence is concentrated among a small number of people at very high risk for both victimization and violent offending. The GVI strategy is intended to help these high-risk individuals avoid involvement in the criminal justice system, keep them safe, stabilize their lives, and create accountability for violence. DHSS, the Delaware Department of Correction, and the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth & Their Families are among the agencies that will provide intervention services under the partnership.

“For any city to be successful, it needs to be safe,” said Governor John Carney. “Under the leadership of Mayor Purzycki and Chief Tracy, we’ve seen a significant reduction in gun violence in our city. But – as there are in all cities – there are still communities that are disproportionately impacted by gun violence in their neighborhoods. Those shootings traumatize children and families, and tear apart entire communities. We know that this gun violence is concentrated among a small group of people who are at very high risk for offending – but also at a very high risk for being victims of gun violence. We believe we can make a real difference if we are able to reach those at highest risk, and help them avoid involvement in the criminal justice system, keep them safe, and stabilize their lives. Thank you to Mayor Purzycki, Chief Tracy, Attorney General Jennings, Professor David Kennedy and many others for their partnership on this important work.”

“Wilmington is making significant gains regarding public safety,” said Wilmington Mayor Michael Purzycki. “We are a safer City today because we are policing the City differently, and that difference is largely because of the trust that has been built between the police department and our citizens. Chief Tracy has introduced new and effective layers to our policing methods in Wilmington and today we add another layer that can continue to improve lives and further reduce crime. My thanks to the Governor, to the Health and Social Services Secretary and to our criminal justice leaders for embracing this effort and to David Kennedy, Chief Tracy and former Chief Cummings who are deeply invested in making sure this initiative works for all of us.”

“This is a new day in Wilmington’s efforts to curtail violence in our neighborhoods,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “Through this initiative, we are recognizing the social and economic dynamics that so often drive violent crime, and we are disrupting those dynamics at their source. This program has shown remarkable promise in sharply reducing group violence and I am committed to its missions: protecting public safety, addressing the causes of anger and hopelessness that exist in our most underserved communities, and providing meaningful alternatives to those who would build a better life for themselves.”

The intergovernmental initiative will bring together state-level social service agencies with the Wilmington Police Department, the Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and community leaders in an effort to further and more significantly reduce homicide and shooting incidents in Wilmington. Intervention will be based on frontline knowledge, and real-time data on violence and individuals who face the highest risk of violence.

The GVI work will be led by Bobby Cummings, the former Wilmington Police Chief who has been appointed Director of Group Violence at the Department of Health and Social Services. The National Network for Safe Communities at John Jay College, led by Professor David Kennedy, will provide technical assistance.

“Over the past several years, the Wilmington Police Department has embraced a range of proven, evidence-based policing strategies, with focused deterrence being key,” said Wilmington Police Chief Robert J. Tracy. “Implementing Group Violence Intervention – the next phase of our layered, comprehensive approach – carries the promise of achieving continued reductions in violent crime, while simultaneously offering support and wraparound services to those who embrace an alternative to engaging in gun violence.”

“We’re extremely excited to be working with Delaware and Wilmington to prevent homicide and gun violence,” said David Kennedy, Director of the National Network for Safe Communities at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “We’ve known and worked with Chief Tracy for years, and the commitment of the Governor’s Office puts Delaware amongst a small but growing number of states making an executive commitment to evidence-based public safety approaches. This work saves lives, keeps people out of the justice system, and builds trust between police and communities. We’re honored to be part of it.”

“As leaders, we all have a responsibility to alter the cycle of poverty, trauma and violence in order to keep individuals and families safe and healthy,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. “The newly appointed Director of Group Violence Intervention in the Department of Health and Social Services will have the resources and the staffing support to meet the social services needs of the small number of people in Wilmington who are at a very high risk for both victimization and for violent offending.”

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The Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) and Partnership for Drug-Free Kids are collaborating to bring dedicated, science-based resources and support to Delaware families. The two entities will work together to provide innovative, digital resources and one-on-one support to parents and caregivers as they help a loved one struggling with opioids or other substances.

With 192 overdose deaths occurring in the U.S. every day, underscored by a vast majority of people unable to access treatment, the combined effort between DHSS and Partnership for Drug-Free Kids aims to be a vital part of an integrated solution to affect statewide change.

In 2017, Delaware ranked sixth in the nation in drug overdose death rates, with most of these deaths directly linked to opioids, including heroin, prescription opioids and fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more powerful than heroin. Last year alone, Delaware lost 400 lives to overdose, marking an increase of 16% in overdose deaths from 2017 – and almost 3 in 4 of those deaths involved fentanyl.

“With thousands of Delawareans and their families continuing to be impacted by the disease of addiction, we need collaborations like this one with Partnership for Drug-Free Kids to offer critical support for parents and other caregivers,” said DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker, a board-certified and practicing family physician. “We need to listen to the challenges that families face and help them find a path to recovery for their loved ones.”

“We are honored to partner with the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services on this important project that will help close a gap in desperately needed support for Delaware families,” said Marcia Lee Taylor, Executive Vice President, External and Government Relations at Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. “Delaware has proven to be at the forefront of finding and adopting solutions to help those impacted by addiction. We are grateful to collaborate with a like-minded partner that understands the importance of bringing together a national family service infrastructure, coupled with local expertise and resources to make sure that more Delawareans get the help they need.”

This collaboration will be comprised of:

• A co-branded landing page tailored for Delaware families with resources, help and support.

• A dedicated Helpline for Delaware families (855-DRUG-FREE), where parents and other caregivers can connect with Parent Support Specialists who can listen to families’ challenges and help them develop an action plan that will help their child work toward recovery. Specialists will also be able to speak to state-specific issues like getting their loved one connected to treatment services through the START Initiative, finding needed clinical support through the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health’s Bridge Clinic, exploring treatment and recovery services at HelpIsHereDE.com, learning where naloxone is available and finding out how Delaware’s Good Samaritan Law works.

• Public service announcements (broadcast, radio, print and digital) to run in donated, pro-bono space thanks to the generosity of Delaware media.

“I’m pleased that families in Delaware will benefit from these best-in-class resources,” said Delaware Governor John Carney. “Across our state, I’ve heard from so many parents who are struggling to make that initial treatment connection for their adult children. Being able to provide parents with valuable, supportive and free resources will make a difference in their families’ lives.”

Josette Manning, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families said, “We see the impact of substance use in families across the lifespan, from substance-exposed infants to parents and grandparents struggling with addiction. We welcome any partnership that increases prevention efforts and treatment opportunities so our families can achieve positive outcomes.”

The collaboration between Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, DHSS and the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (DSCYF) complements ongoing work to increase treatment and recovery services, reduce harm and expand prevention efforts by DHSS’ Division of Substance Abuse and Mental and Division of Public Health, and by the Behavioral Health Consortium, chaired by Delaware Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long. The Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH) has partnered with atTAcK addiction, a grassroots advocacy group led by parents impacted by addiction, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Delaware to train parents and other adults to handle Helpline calls.

“When I discovered that my son was struggling with heroin addiction, I didn’t know where to turn, or how to go about finding help for him. I never felt as helpless, hopeless and ashamed as I did during that time in my life,” said Belinda Wilson, a North Wilmington mom whose son is in now in recovery. “Finally, I was able to get my son the help he needed, but I realized I also needed support for my own self-care so that I would have the emotional and physical strength required to continue to help my son. Bringing these necessary resources to our state will help so many other families in Delaware, families like mine, have better outcomes for their loved ones who are struggling with substance use.”

For more information, visit https://drugfree.org/delaware.

First Lady also announces first Compassionate Champion Award winners  

DOVER, Del. – At a kickoff event for Trauma Awareness Month in Delaware, First Lady Tracey Quillen Carney today announced the launch of a new, growing statewide partnership for trauma-informed care to help elevate stories of the work of leaders in trauma-informed practices and approaches across the state called Trauma Informed Delaware. The goal of the statewide public-private-nonprofit coalition is to coordinate a sustainable system that advances resilience through community-based awareness, trauma prevention, and early intervention.

“Trauma-informed care is a pre-requisite to any effective strength-based strategy,” said First Lady Tracey Quillen Carney. “Progress starts when a critical mass of people learn and listen, when we recognize – down to our bone marrow – that these are our children, our veterans, our neighbors, and that we are all in this building-the-future business together. Thank you to the all of the people who have been leading trauma-informed work for many years, and to everyone who will be participating in Trauma Awareness Month events.”

“Trauma-informed care is real,” said Tony Allen, Executive Vice President and Provost at Delaware State University, which hosted Wednesday’s kickoff event. “When it is present, it goes to the very heart of practitioners knowing both their clients and themselves, and having a clear belief in the power of Ubuntu – I am because WE are. That is not a warm and fuzzy principle or an interesting catch phrase. It is a guiding principle for anyone of us – teachers, social workers, therapists, law enforcement officers, health care professionals — who work with fellow citizens who face unending challenges that place their mental, physical or spiritual health in peril. At Delaware State University, we are committed to building a cadre of healing professionals across any number of disciplines that understand Ubuntu and put it into practice in everything they do for their profession and their community.”

“Our educators know first-hand that factors outside of the classroom impact how their students learn inside of the classroom, we have been hearing this for years. The creation of this statewide partnership and Trauma Awareness Month are an important first step towards making Delaware trauma-informed,” said Stephanie Ingram, President of the Delaware State Education Association. “We are thankful to have the support of Governor Carney and Secretary Bunting in facing these challenges and helping our students find pathways to resilience.”

Trauma Informed Delaware at www.traumainformedde.org will support streamlined requests for trainings, host collaborative convening opportunities, promote partners and events from across the state, and offer those supports and other forms of assistance through promotion of and advocacy for:

• Access to quality behavioral and integrated health care.
• Strength-based services for youth and adults.
• Education for providers and the community.

Wednesday’s kickoff event was coordinated by Governor Carney’s Family Services Cabinet Council, which was charged with promoting Trauma Awareness Month as part of the Governor’s Executive Order 24. The Council also created an online calendar to share information with state employees, community partners, and members of the public on educational and professional development opportunities related to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and building resilience.

“At the Children’s Department, we know that many of our clients come to us with a history of trauma,” said Josette Manning, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth, and their Families. “We also know that our staff, tasked with helping the most vulnerable children, also suffer trauma. Today, we all came together as a community to learn how we can become more trauma informed to better serve our children and families and how to take care of each other as we do it. We are looking forward to a month of activities focused on building resilience both inside and outside of our Department.”

“During the past year, more than 1,000 Department of Health and Social Services employees with the greatest level of direct client contact have been trained in a trauma-informed approach,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, and a board-certified family physician. “We are building a workforce that understands what trauma is, how it affects people across their lifespans, and the most effective ways that we can assess and meet our clients’ needs. Having a trauma-informed workforce is a critical step in supporting and promoting recovery for our clients who have experienced trauma so they can build resilience and learn to thrive in their communities.”

“Toxic stress in childhood can have a profound and lasting impact on the lifelong health and well-being of a child, well into adulthood. Early intervention is key to reducing this risk,” said Lee Pachter, DO, Medical Director, General Pediatrics at Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children. “Nemours is pleased to be part of a state-wide initiative bringing together experts in the field to help give our kids the resources they need to mitigate the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).”

During the day-long symposium at Delaware State University, the First Lady also announced the Compassionate Champion Award winners and presented a proclamation from Governor Carney. The honorees are:

• Stephanie Sklodowski from Christiana Care and Christiana School District’s Newark High School Wellness Center.

• Wilmington University College of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Psychology Department.

• Renée Beaman, Director of the Division of State Service Centers in the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS).

• Division of State Services Centers in DHSS.

• Georgetown Police Department.

• Shue-Medill Middle School.

• Smyrna School District.

• Mount Pleasant Elementary School.

• Wendy Turner from Brandywine School District.

• Ryan Palmer from Caesar Rodney School District.

• Collaborative Partnership to promote trauma-informed care approaches, including United Way of Delaware, the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families, the Department of Health and Social Services, the Department of Education and the Wilmington Community Advisory Council.

The symposium featured an interactive panel moderated by DHSS Secretary Walker and breakout sessions on the neuroscience of stress, navigating trauma with boys of color, mindfulness and a screening of the film, “Broken Places.” Keynote speakers Heather Forbes, LCSW and author of “Help for Billy,” talked about understanding challenging and difficult behaviors, and Dr. Abdul-Malik Muhammad, Ed.D, a trauma-informed care leader in Delaware, addressed the collective power to heal.

The event was sponsored by the Delaware State Education Association, made possible through a grant from National Education Association, and co-sponsored by Trauma Matters Delaware, Nemours, Wilmington University and Delaware State University.

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Dover, Delaware-January 2019 – Help us give a child that is homeless or in foster care a warm hug! Cold weather is still in the forecast and everyone deserves to stay warm. Who doesn’t like getting a hug or knowing that someone cares?

The GACEC and its community Partners are doing just that for the children of Delaware who are homeless or in foster care. This year we have been privileged to partner with many organizations and individuals who have given generously. For the fifth year Operation Warm has donated cases of coats totaling around 800 to the cause. I Heart Media had also been an invaluable partner, helping raise awareness of the need and bringing in many more drop off locations throughout the state. We are grateful to once again have received generous donations of hundreds of handmade blankets from Kozy Kovers for Kids and Fleece for Keeps.

Wendy Strauss, Executive Director of the Governor’s Advisory Council for Exceptional Citizens, shared “It’s hard for children to learn when their basic needs aren’t even met. We want to ensure that they have the opportunity to stay warm and feel loved regardless of their situation. It is always so heartwarming knowing that Delaware residents always come through and give so generously to those in need. We truly are connecting hearts and collecting hugs for those in need.”

Donations of socks, sweatshirts and sweatpants, warm pajamas and toiletry items are still greatly needed. These items are in short supply for this year’s drive. If you can help please consider donating today.
Drop-off points are located throughout the state and may be found on the homepage of the GACEC at http://gacec.delaware.gov. Contact the GACEC at (302) 739-4553 or Sybil Brown, GACEC Administrative Coordinator Sybil.brown@gacec.k12.de.us for additional information.

The Governor’s Advisory Council for Exceptional Citizens (GACEC) and its community partners, are pleased to report that the Heart 2 Heart Hugs campaign has now begun. Heart 2 Heart Hugs is focused on providing warmth, comfort, hugs and smiles for kids and young adults in Delaware who are homeless or in foster care. Donations of “hugs” (to include new or handmade coats, blankets, scarves, gloves, fleece items, monetary donations and more) will continue until February 2019 for this year’s effort.

The GACEC has received tremendous support not only from individuals within the community, but from area businesses, state agencies and other organizations as well. Most recently the Twisted Stitchers crocheting group that meets at Dover’s Modern Maturity Center donated many large bags of beautiful handmade items. In October the program was blessed with another large donation of handmade items from the Care Wear project that is part of Volunteer Delaware.

Statistics from the Delaware Department of Education (DOE) show that in the 2017-18 school year, there were 21,168 students receiving special education services. Roughly one third of those students are homeless or in foster care. Homelessness impacts children and the State of Delaware in many ways. Health issues, food security and educational proficiency are areas that the report uses to show how great the needs are for children who are homeless. Wendy Strauss, executive director of the GACEC stated that “…this project connects hearts and collects hugs for our children in foster care and for our children who are homeless.

Programs like this let our children know that we are thinking about them and we care for them.” Dover Mayor, Robin R. Christiansen commented during his remarks at the Kickoff Event, held November 29th at Central Middle School, “Every one of us can make a difference in the lives of someone who is not as fortunate as we are, and we should strive to do that daily.” Secretary Josette Manning of the Division of Services for Children Youth and their Families (DSCYF) spoke about the blessing that this program is to those experiencing placement in foster care or homelessness. “Often the transition to foster care is a move that is quick and traumatic for the children, having something of their very own at a new place can be such a comfort.” Wendy Strauss concluded the kickoff by reminding everyone to connect hearts and collect hugs for our children who are homeless or in foster care across the State. Items will be collected through February 11, 2019, with the distribution event scheduled to take place on February 14, 2019 at George Massey Station in Dover. The distribution reception will allow foster care representatives and school homeless liaisons from around the State the opportunity to select needed items for their clients.

Drop-off points are located throughout the state and may be found on the homepage of the GACEC at http://gacec.delaware.gov. Contact the GACEC at (302) 739-4553 or Sybil Baker, GACEC Administrative Coordinator Sybil.brown@gacec.k12.de.us for additional information.