Grant Will Support HCPH’s Violence Prevention Services
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Program (OJP) announced that it has awarded a $1,999,715 grant to Harris County in support of Harris County Public Health’s (HCPH) Violence Prevention Services, as part of a national effort to reduce gun violence and other serious violence.
Harris County Public Health is one of 52 communities and organizations across the county to receive funding under OJP’s Community Intervention and Prevention Initiative.
The Justice Department awards, funded in part through the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, mark a historic investment in community violence intervention programs from the Department of Justice. The awards total $100 million.
“Gun violence has claimed far too many lives, damaged too many communities and taken an especially heavy toll on historically marginalized neighborhoods,” stated U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “America’s law enforcement professionals perform heroic work every day to protect our homes and streets, but we must enlist the help of trusted messengers and local organizations that have their pulse on community needs. These investments represent a significant step towards finding durable solutions to our most pressing public safety challenges.”
The resources made available under the Community Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative will develop and expand the infrastructure needed to build community safety and strengthen neighborhoods.
They will support holistic, cross-agency collaborations; seed new efforts and fund expansion plans in both community-based organizations and local government agencies; provide funding and assistance through intermediaries to build the capacity of smaller organizations; offer technical aid to jurisdictions that do not receive federal funding; and invest in research and evaluation to better understand what works to reduce violence.
HCPH’s Community Health and Violence Prevention Services (CHVPS) provides strategic direction, oversight, and implementation efforts to address the root causes of violence through a public health approach.
The Division’s two initiatives, the Community Violence Interruption Program (CVIP) and Holistic Assistance Response Team (HART), encompass the reduction of gun violence in communities and dispatching health-based first responders to non-emergency 9-1-1 calls, to address behavioral health and social welfare concerns.
CHVPS works in partnership with local agencies and community-based partners for a coordinated, holistic response to improve community health and welfare and reduce violence.
“We are truly grateful to the Justice Department and the Office of Justice Program for their grant in support of our programs to reduce gun violence in our communities,” said Harris County Public Health Executive Director Barbie L. Robinson. “Preventing violence from escalating and promoting safer communities are critical to the mental and physical well-being of residents, and that is why Harris County Public Health and our partner agencies are dedicated to this endeavor. Violence is not isolated to one community – it affects all of us.”
HCPH’s CVIP and HART initiatives were launched earlier this year with an initial focus on two areas that have historically been vulnerable to violent crimes and infrastructure challenges. These areas include the Cypress Station neighborhood in northern Harris County and the clustered communities of Sunnyside, South Side, Greater OST and South Union in southern Houston.
For information about HCPH’s Violence Prevention Services, visit www.hcphtx.org/chvps.