CAVE, which stands for Community Anti-Violence Education, is a democratically organized, peer-led counseling and education group initiated by men incarcerated at the Danville state prison in 2010 in order to help the neighborhoods from which they came, places devastated by violence, through spreading the knowledge and practice of trauma-informed practices. The group launched its outreach program in 2014, and since that time has worked with dozens of men at the prison, many of whom are now back home. Run by one of the program's alumni, a CAVE program is now operating at a re-entry facility in Chicago. In order to keep functioning at Danville, however, the program requires outside members to come in and contribute their time and heartfelt participation.
Other than a willingness to listen and be reflective, NO SPECIAL CLINICAL EXPERTISE IS REQUIRED. The operational foundation of CAVE is a curriculum based on psychiatrist Sandra Bloom's Sanctuary Model (sanctuaryweb.com), and we frequently consult with Elena Quintana, a Chicago-based psychologist with a long history of facilitating conflict resolution and restorative justice in low-income communities and carceral institutions.
CAVE is a program of the Education Justice Project (educationjustice.net), a unit of the College of Education at the University of Illinois, is an initiative that has since 2008 been teaching higher-level undergraduate courses and leading related programs at the nearby Danville state prison. Graduate students, community members, and faculty are encouraged to get involved with EJP's prison-based work.
We will hold an information session on Tuesday, February 6, from 12:15-1:00 at the EJP community space in the University YMCA, 1001 S. Wright St., room 121-- just off of the first floor cafe area. All are welcome, and we'll have some light snacks. Flyer attached to this email. Feel free to bring your lunch!
All EJP applicants should be at least 21 years of age. Applications for EJP programs, including CAVE, are all due on Thursday, March 1. We will hold interviews before or shortly after that date, as there is clearance paperwork to be immediately completed for accepted applicants, and then a semester or so of waiting to be cleared to enter the prison.
Please contact me personally at stabler2@illinois.edu, and my co-coordinator Ian Scott at iscott3@illinois.edu, with any questions. You can also reach out to EJP operations manager Jamie Hines at jlhines@illinois.edu, or EJP director Professor Rebecca Ginsburg at rginsbur@illinois.edu.