Healing Place Serve Mentoring Child Victim Program

This project 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. Grantees will join current and previously funded grantees and work with OJJDP's training and technical assistance provider to develop or enhance mentoring service models and mentor training based on best practices.

The Healing Place Serve project will decrease the number of child victims of CSE/DST in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, by developing and enhancing mentoring services and mentor training. This project will also provide emergency housing for child victims and increase public awareness of child CSE/DST. Healing Place Serve will conduct extensive street outreach and will partner with local law enforcement, the local Office of Juvenile Justice, and other government and community agencies. The project will support initial and ongoing training for mentors and direct services to youth using a three-phase, timeline-based approach. From 2012–2015, Healing Place Serve administered a Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) planning grant to develop an evidence-based mentoring program for youth in care who are at risk of homelessness and/or trafficking. Funding under this project will enable Healing Place Serve to implement and enhance the mentoring program designed under the DHHS grant. CA/NCF