Resilient Communities: Building Capacity to Provide Comprehensive Supportive Services to Trafficked Children and Youth

With funding through the OVC 2024 Integrated Services for Minor Victims of Human Trafficking, the CENTER FOR SAFETY AND CHANGE, INC (the Center) located in Rockland County, New York proposes a project titled “Resilient Communities: Building Capacity to Provide Comprehensive Supportive Services to Trafficked Children and Youth”.  The primary purpose is to expand and enhance services for child and youth trafficking victims in Rockland County so that they may achieve safety and stability and have the opportunity to heal from their trauma. The primary activities are to 1) Enhance the Center’s capacity to identify and serve trafficking victims ages 0-17 in Rockland; 2) Expand the Center’s capacity to provide holistic, trauma-informed supportive services to trafficked youth; 3) Expand the Center’s ability to provide trauma-informed legal services and representation to trafficked youth; 4) Increase human trafficking awareness and  improve victim identification in Rockland County through training, outreach, and coordinated community response; and 5) Provide trafficked youth with education, employment and/or skill building opportunities. The expected outcomes are services provided to 40 trafficked youth in year 1, 50 youth in year 2, and 60+ youth in year 3; facilitation of a minimum 18 trafficking task force meetings; host three annual trafficking campaigns, facilitating a minimum of 60 assemblies for elementary, middle, and high school youth; facilitate a minimum of 75 human trafficking trainings to the community; and provide a minimum of 50 aftercare workshops for youth. The geographic service area Rockland County, NY, which is located approximately 30 miles outside of New York City and has an estimated population of 340,807 people, of which approximately 29% are under the age of 18 years old with a target audience of minor victims of human trafficking ages. The subrecipient for this award is Wonder Girls. Survivors will be equipped through Wonder Girls to transition to pursue a safe and self-supporting life through job training, resume building and job interviewing skills, financial literacy and a host of other life skills.