Importance of experiential learning: How Cure Violence staff learned to help change others by first changing themselves

The Cure Violence (CV) model utilizes an epidemiologic, community-based approach towards the prevention and spread of violence. Treating violence in this way often involves a street level approach targeted towards changing the behaviors and norms in the highest of high-risk youth and young adults, many of whom are gang members with a history of violence.  An essential component of the CV model is the use of community health workers trained in disease control measures to engage with those who are most at-risk. Emphasized as credible messengers in the communities in which they engage, many of the staff employed by CV are former gang members themselves and may have also spent time in prison. The goal of this study is to display a profile of the individuals undertaking critical work towards helping control and prevent the spread of violence in some of Chicago’s most dangerous and volatile neighborhoods. This presentation will describe the site-level community health workers at Cure Violence with the objectives of identifying who makes up one of the organization’s greatest assets in reducing and preventing violence. Further, it will evaluate the impact and importance of CV staff as credible messengers to at-risk populations in stopping the spread of violence. Mixed methods data collection of surveys and follow-up interviews will be used to highlight staff background, desistance of violence and challenges towards avoiding recidivism. In addition to its use for this research study, implementation implications of increasing programmatic support to key staff will also be discussed.