Friends Of The Will County Child Advocacy Center

Programs: In 2017 we have conducted 436 forensic interviews. Having two forensic interviewers has allowed for the case load to be divided 60/40 and has provided our senior forensic interviewer the ability to mentor/guide the new forensic interviewer, and provide training to local police departments. Additionally our new forensic interviewer is bilingual which reflects the cultural diversity of our clients. We have expanded our existing behavioral health program with on-staff, trauma informed therapists which is crucial in allowing us to increase the number of children/families who receive evidenced-based, trauma-informed mental health services for children and families inpacted by child sexual abuse and other trauma. The trauma therapists observe the forensic interviews, assess clients and their non-offending family members, implement services, develop care plans and provide individual and group therapy services to the clients and their families thus ensuring the highest quality of services. Additionally, they facilitate trainings, awareness-raising activities and collaborative partnerships to educate parents, caregivers and members of the community regarding preventing and responding to child sexual abuse. The cac's three full-time therapists, who not only provide trauma-focused, evidence-supported, mental health treatment, but also reflect the cultural diversity of our clients. In additon to shorter wait times and increased engagement, having full time counseling staff also gives us a little more control over the quality of counseling by allowing for more formal clinical supervision and policies/procedures that maintain consistency among the counselors that is harder to achieve with a contractual pool. In additon to individual counseling, we offer support groups including: parent support group in english and spanish, kids play therapy support group - (ages 5-11), teen support group- for youth (ages 12-17), professionals support group,