Fall Symposium 2023

Addressing Community Violence;
Building Community Resilience

Held September 28th

Chapter members and fellow pediatric advocates joined for our fall symposium, exploring the root causes of violence and innovative approaches to build resilience in communities.

Recap: Fall Symposium 2023

Addressing Community Violence

The chapter held its annual Fall Symposium “Addressing Community Violence, Building Community ResilienceResiliency” last Thursday night with a keynote address by Wendy Ellis, DrPH, MPH, an Assistant Professor in Global Health and the Founding Director of the Center for Community Resilience at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University. Dr. Ellis then led a panel discussions with advocates from the DC community that included:

  • Yazid Jackson: RestorativeDC Director at SchoolTalk

  • Eduardo Ferrer: Policy Director of the Georgetown Juvenile Justice Initiative

  • Paige Hoffman: Deputy Chief of School Improvement for DC Public Schools

  • Chamiya Carnathan: Schools without Walls

Adding to the provocative discussion were teen representatives from the Mikva Challenge, a non-profit organization that develops youth to be empowered, informed, and active citizens to promote a just and equitable society.

The students participated in a call to action that helped close the meeting with facilitated small group sessions in which attendees  explored community strengths and opportunities to partner with fellow advocates to foster resilience.

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going. The fall symposium was the first in a series addressing Preventing Community Violence. 

Please join us at the next Board Meeting to discuss next steps for DCAAP and Community Resiliency. 

If you could not make the meeting but want to be involved in our next steps, complete this survey on what resources would be most useful in your day to day practice with youth and trauma-informed care.