This is going to be long, but hopefully very informative.
Things here in Illinois are not good.
The state has no current working fiscal budget. I realize several other states are in the same position--but I'm not up to date on how those states are doing, with the exception of California (thanks Tapati for that info. from facebook).
Let me tell you how it's affected the agency where I work, and the people in Illinois in general.
I work for an agency called Dove, Inc. It is an umbrella social service agency; we have a domestic violence shelter, AIM (Alternative Interventions for Men--a batterer's program), WAVE (Women Against Violent Encounters--a program for women with DV charges agaisnt them but who are also victims of DV), a homeless program (called Homeward Bound), a diversity program, a community services program, Fresh Start--a catering program that is staffed by previously homeless people that are needing help learning job skills, Project Read, RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program), and a recycling program.
The program that I work for is the domestic violence program. I'm the administrative specialist (meaning I enter all the statistics for our program into a statewide domestic violence database that allows ICJIA--Illinois Criminal Justice and Information Authority and ICADV--Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence--to keep track of how many victims of domestic violence are served in Illinois, and what type of services they receive throughout the year). In addition to that, I do provide direct services to clients as needed, answer the 24 hour hotline, cover the shelter as assigned, and do on-call duties.
The domestic violence program is the largest of our programs, in terms of counties served, staff members that run the program, and the amount of clients we serve. We have the main office, which houses the shelter where I work. We also have offices in three other surrounding counties.
I started working for Dove five years ago next month, and this is what the staff make-up and the hours they've worked have been in the last year:
Administrative Specialist: Me 40 hours/wk
Children's Specialist: Cathy 40 hours/wk
Children's Specialist: Freda 40 hours/wk
Client Service Coordinator: Cluney 40 hours/wk
Parenting Specialist: Willa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocacy Supervisor/WAVE Coordinator: Vivian 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Nabila 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Tresa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Vicki 24 hours/wk
Substance Abuse Specialist: Donna 25 hours/wk
Shelter Coordinator: Patty 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Rose 40 hours/wk
Teen Specialist/DV Education Specialist/AIM director: Joyce 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Cynthia 40 hours/wk
DV/Homeward Bound Liason: Jamie 40 hours/wk
Moultrie County Outreach Specialist: Mary 40 hours/wk
Shelby County Outreach Specialist: Susie 40 hours/wk
Dewitt County Outreach Specialist: Sharon 40 hours/wk
Receptionist: Stevie 40 hours/wk
Program Director: Teri 40 hours/wk
Now, number of clients served from July 1, 2008-June 30, 2009:
DV Victims--Adults: 848
DV Victims--Children: 288
AIM clients: 101
WAVE clients: 34
OP (Order of Protection) Clients: 517
Hours of counseling/advocacy for victims: 12,313.
Now keep in mind, that even when we are full staffed, and full in the shelter, things are rough.
As of July 1, this is how our program looks due to budget cuts because of the lack of state budget:
Administrative Specialist: Me 30 hours/wk Hours cut
Children's Specialist: Cathy--Position eliminated
Children's Specialist: Freda 40 hours/wk
Client Service Coordinator: Cluney--Position eliminated
Parenting Specialist: Willa--Position Eliminated
Legal Advocacy Supervisor/WAVE Coordinator: Vivian 40 hours/wk--WAVE program cut
Legal Advocate: Nabila 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Tresa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Vicki 24 hours/wk
Substance Abuse Specialist: Donna--Position Eliminated
Shelter Coordinator: Patty 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Rose 40 hours/wk
Teen Specialist/DV Education Specialist/AIM director: Joyce 40 hours/wk AIM Program Eliminated
Shelter Specialist: Cynthia 25 hours/wk Hours Cut
DV/Homeward Bound Liason: Jamie 40 hours/wk
Moultrie County Outreach Specialist: Mary 20 hours/wk Hours Cut
Shelby County Outreach Specialist: Susie 20 hours/wk Hours Cut
Dewitt County Outreach Specialist: Sharon 40 hours/wk
Receptionist: Stevie 40 hours/wk
Program Director: Teri 40 hours/wk
So for the DV Program that adds up to: 4 positions completely eliminated, 2 programs (AIM and WAVE) cut from the budget, and 4 people who've had hours cut.
Other Agency cuts:
Community services program--two employeeseliminated
Fresh Start Catering--6 employees eliminated
RSVP--one employee eliminated
Administration--one employee eliminated
Diversity Director eliminated
That is how the lack of budget has affected our agency and our staff. We had to cut 61% of our budget--slightly over $510,000.
Other domestic violence programs in our state have had similiar cuts. I know of two that have entirely shutdown--both of which where fairly large agencies. Another no longer has a 24 hour crisis line. Another is no longer accepting walk-ins. One has cut the number of beds in their shelter from 20 to 10.
At our agency, we are now getting calls from around the state--as far away as Chicago and Southern Illinois--from women and children who are in desperate need of a place to go to be safe from their abusers. And we've had to turn them away because we, like all the other agencies in the state, are completely full. Clients are not getting the attention and help that they need even if they are in shelter, because there are not enough to staff to fully serve everyone.
This was just my attempt to show everyone what we're facing right now, from a very clinical, matter-of-fact stand point. I will do another post in the very near future--from a different, less matter-of-fact, clinical POV.
Questions? Comments?
The state has no current working fiscal budget. I realize several other states are in the same position--but I'm not up to date on how those states are doing, with the exception of California (thanks Tapati for that info. from facebook).
Let me tell you how it's affected the agency where I work, and the people in Illinois in general.
I work for an agency called Dove, Inc. It is an umbrella social service agency; we have a domestic violence shelter, AIM (Alternative Interventions for Men--a batterer's program), WAVE (Women Against Violent Encounters--a program for women with DV charges agaisnt them but who are also victims of DV), a homeless program (called Homeward Bound), a diversity program, a community services program, Fresh Start--a catering program that is staffed by previously homeless people that are needing help learning job skills, Project Read, RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program), and a recycling program.
The program that I work for is the domestic violence program. I'm the administrative specialist (meaning I enter all the statistics for our program into a statewide domestic violence database that allows ICJIA--Illinois Criminal Justice and Information Authority and ICADV--Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence--to keep track of how many victims of domestic violence are served in Illinois, and what type of services they receive throughout the year). In addition to that, I do provide direct services to clients as needed, answer the 24 hour hotline, cover the shelter as assigned, and do on-call duties.
The domestic violence program is the largest of our programs, in terms of counties served, staff members that run the program, and the amount of clients we serve. We have the main office, which houses the shelter where I work. We also have offices in three other surrounding counties.
I started working for Dove five years ago next month, and this is what the staff make-up and the hours they've worked have been in the last year:
Administrative Specialist: Me 40 hours/wk
Children's Specialist: Cathy 40 hours/wk
Children's Specialist: Freda 40 hours/wk
Client Service Coordinator: Cluney 40 hours/wk
Parenting Specialist: Willa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocacy Supervisor/WAVE Coordinator: Vivian 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Nabila 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Tresa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Vicki 24 hours/wk
Substance Abuse Specialist: Donna 25 hours/wk
Shelter Coordinator: Patty 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Rose 40 hours/wk
Teen Specialist/DV Education Specialist/AIM director: Joyce 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Cynthia 40 hours/wk
DV/Homeward Bound Liason: Jamie 40 hours/wk
Moultrie County Outreach Specialist: Mary 40 hours/wk
Shelby County Outreach Specialist: Susie 40 hours/wk
Dewitt County Outreach Specialist: Sharon 40 hours/wk
Receptionist: Stevie 40 hours/wk
Program Director: Teri 40 hours/wk
Now, number of clients served from July 1, 2008-June 30, 2009:
DV Victims--Adults: 848
DV Victims--Children: 288
AIM clients: 101
WAVE clients: 34
OP (Order of Protection) Clients: 517
Hours of counseling/advocacy for victims: 12,313.
Now keep in mind, that even when we are full staffed, and full in the shelter, things are rough.
As of July 1, this is how our program looks due to budget cuts because of the lack of state budget:
Administrative Specialist: Me 30 hours/wk Hours cut
Children's Specialist: Cathy--Position eliminated
Children's Specialist: Freda 40 hours/wk
Client Service Coordinator: Cluney--Position eliminated
Parenting Specialist: Willa--Position Eliminated
Legal Advocacy Supervisor/WAVE Coordinator: Vivian 40 hours/wk--WAVE program cut
Legal Advocate: Nabila 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Tresa 40 hours/wk
Legal Advocate: Vicki 24 hours/wk
Substance Abuse Specialist: Donna--Position Eliminated
Shelter Coordinator: Patty 40 hours/wk
Shelter Specialist: Rose 40 hours/wk
Teen Specialist/DV Education Specialist/AIM director: Joyce 40 hours/wk AIM Program Eliminated
Shelter Specialist: Cynthia 25 hours/wk Hours Cut
DV/Homeward Bound Liason: Jamie 40 hours/wk
Moultrie County Outreach Specialist: Mary 20 hours/wk Hours Cut
Shelby County Outreach Specialist: Susie 20 hours/wk Hours Cut
Dewitt County Outreach Specialist: Sharon 40 hours/wk
Receptionist: Stevie 40 hours/wk
Program Director: Teri 40 hours/wk
So for the DV Program that adds up to: 4 positions completely eliminated, 2 programs (AIM and WAVE) cut from the budget, and 4 people who've had hours cut.
Other Agency cuts:
Community services program--two employeeseliminated
Fresh Start Catering--6 employees eliminated
RSVP--one employee eliminated
Administration--one employee eliminated
Diversity Director eliminated
That is how the lack of budget has affected our agency and our staff. We had to cut 61% of our budget--slightly over $510,000.
Other domestic violence programs in our state have had similiar cuts. I know of two that have entirely shutdown--both of which where fairly large agencies. Another no longer has a 24 hour crisis line. Another is no longer accepting walk-ins. One has cut the number of beds in their shelter from 20 to 10.
At our agency, we are now getting calls from around the state--as far away as Chicago and Southern Illinois--from women and children who are in desperate need of a place to go to be safe from their abusers. And we've had to turn them away because we, like all the other agencies in the state, are completely full. Clients are not getting the attention and help that they need even if they are in shelter, because there are not enough to staff to fully serve everyone.
This was just my attempt to show everyone what we're facing right now, from a very clinical, matter-of-fact stand point. I will do another post in the very near future--from a different, less matter-of-fact, clinical POV.
Questions? Comments?