2014 Mentoring for Child Victims of CSE/DST Training and Technical Assistance Initiative

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) administers funding and programs to coordinate the Federal government's response to missing and exploited children. These resources support a range of activities designed to meet the needs of missing, exploited, runaway, thrownaway and other victimized children and their families. Activities include direct services, research and demonstration programs, training and technical assistance, capacity building and interagency coordination. The statutory authority is Pub. L. No. 113-235; 128 Stat. 2130,2195.

The Mid-Atlantic Network of Youth and Family Services, Inc. (MANY) will enhance the capacity of providers to prevent and address commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) and domestic sex trafficking (DST) of minors by supporting efforts to identify and enroll girls, boys and LGBTQ youth who are in need of services; supporting effective multi-disciplinary interventions that include strategies to serve under-identified and underserved populations; and enhance mentoring service models through evidence-informed and evidence-based practices. MANY will utilize a comprehensive continuum of integrated training, technical assistance (T&TA) and support that was carefully designed in response to the key obstacles programs face in preventing and addressing DST of minors. These include: 1) identifying and assessing youth in need of services; 2) employing an effective multi-disciplinary intervention approach specific to minors experiencing DST and 3) integrating evidence-based practices into mentoring service models. MANY has established the following goals and objectives for the project: 1) provide support, training and technical assistance to community-based programs working with minor victims of DST/CSE and stakeholders, 2) assess the individual and collective T&TA needs of project sites and develop TA plans for each site, 3) facilitate peer-to-peer information sharing between sites and networking to promote problem solving and innovation through the exchange of information and ideas across project sites, 4) establish tools and practical techniques for facilitating information sharing, communication and coordination across disciplines, 5) develop and maintain a pool of experts for onsite TA who can provide assistance tailored to the specific needs of each project site, and 6) convene grantee meetings in conjunction with OJJDP. CA/NCF

The Mentoring for Child Victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation (CSE) and Domestic Sex Trafficking (DST) Initiative supports efforts of local communities and organizations to develop or enhance their mentoring capacity, facilitate outreach to child victims or youth at risk (17 years old or younger) of commercial sexual exploitation and domestic sex trafficking, and increasing the availability of direct services to these youth. The population to be served is girls and boys, including LGBTQ youth who are at risk or are victims of CSE and DST. The grantees will develop or update strategies to recruit and maintain mentors to serve this population; begin or enhance efforts to identify and enroll girls and boys, including LGBTQ youth who are in need of services; and provide needed services to these youth.

The Mid-Atlantic Network of Youth and Family Services, Inc. (MANY) will provide training and technical assistance (TTA) to the project sites funded under this initiative. MANY will utilize a comprehensive continuum of integrated TTA and support that was carefully designed in response to the key obstacles programs face in preventing and addressing DST of minors. These include: 1) identifying and assessing youth in need of services; 2) employing an effective multi-disciplinary intervention approach specific to minors experiencing DST and 3) integrating evidence-based practices into mentoring service models.

MANY has established the following goals and objectives for the project: 1) provide support, training and technical assistance to community-based programs working with minor victims of DST/CSE and stakeholders, 2) assess the individual and collective TTA needs of project sites and develop TA plans for each site, 3) facilitate peer-to-peer information sharing between sites and networking to promote problem solving and innovation through the exchange of information and ideas across project sites, 4) establish tools and practical techniques for facilitating information sharing, communication and coordination across disciplines, 5) develop and maintain a pool of experts for onsite TA who can provide assistance tailored to the specific needs of each project site, and 6) convene grantee meetings in conjunction with OJJDP.
NCA/NCF