Meet the Grantees
Current Grantees
Click on the state names to learn more.
The Colorado Department of Public Safety manages the Connecting Colorado: Building Effective Anti-trafficking Systems program. This program includes evaluation by the Colorado State University Social Work Research Center. The team is building collaboration and consistency across the state’s multidisciplinary teams through innovative survivor engagement practices.
The goal of the Delaware Child and Youth Victims of Human Trafficking Improvements project is to improve responses and outcomes for child and youth sex and labor trafficking victims in the state of Delaware by working to overcome barriers in identifying and serving victims and develop evidence-based programs and interventions. In addition, the goal is to fill and close existing gaps in services and coordinate responses in existing anti-trafficking and youth-serving efforts, including those related to victim assistance, law enforcement, child welfare, runaway and homeless youth, juvenile justice, and other agencies.
The Illinois Human Trafficking Collaborative Systems Change Initiative will establish a comprehensive statewide response to child and youth sex and labor trafficking. A compensated survivor advocate panel will be created to offer a lived experience perspective throughout all activities. The purpose of this project is to create a coordinated, multidisciplinary, trauma-informed response to child and youth victims of sex and labor trafficking throughout Illinois’ systems of government and private agencies.
The Louisiana Child and Youth Trafficking Collaborative Accessibility Initiative (LCYTC-AI) is managed by the Louisiana Governor’s Office of Human Trafficking Prevention and the Louisiana Alliance of Children’s Advocacy Centers. The LCYTC-AI is creating an effective statewide system of equitable care coordination for minor and youth victims of human trafficking.
The Maryland Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and Victim Services is partnering with the University of Maryland School of Social Work to develop a statewide child trafficking response strategy. Through this project, the team is implementing Maryland’s strategic plan for addressing human trafficking of children and youth.
The Minnesota Safe Harbor Expansion to Improve Outcomes for Trafficked Children and Youth Project is managed by the Minnesota Department of Health. This statewide anti-trafficking initiative is strengthening state-Tribal partnerships, strengthen collaboration among state agencies, and improving law enforcement’s response to victims.
The Minnesota Safe Harbor Expansion to Improve Outcomes for Trafficked Children and Youth Project is managed by the Minnesota Department of Health. This statewide anti-trafficking initiative is strengthening state-Tribal partnerships, strengthen collaboration among state agencies, and improving law enforcement’s response to victims.
The Ohio Department of Public Safety leads the Human Trafficking Task Force of Ohio by developing and implementing a statewide strategy to build the capacity of Ohio’s juvenile justice and child welfare systems to identify and serve minor and youth victims of human trafficking.
The Oregon Department of Justice’s project has been successful in (1) mandating all state agencies to complete annual trainings on human trafficking awareness and identification, (2) mandating youth-serving agencies to conduct human trafficking screening for all children at intake, (3) creating and implementing a crisis and non-crisis response protocol, and (4) creating and implementing human trafficking training.
The Improving Outcomes for Child and Youth Victims of Trafficking in Virginia project will establish a comprehensive statewide response to child and youth sex and labor trafficking in Illinois. A compensated survivor advocate panel will be created to offer a lived experience perspective throughout all activities. The purpose of this project is to create a coordinated, multidisciplinary, trauma-informed response to child and youth victims of sex and labor trafficking throughout Virginia’s systems of government and private agencies.
Previous Grantees
Click on the state names to learn more.
The University of Alabama School of Social Work was awarded a FY17 Improving Outcomes for Human Trafficking of Child and Youth Victims grant. Alabama identified key areas to address during its grant period of performance and developed an online screening tool to increase identification of victims, created a coordinated statewide response protocol, and increased awareness by developing a public-facing resource website, including a searchable list of service providers in the state, printable resource materials, a blog, and an events and trainings calendar.
California’s Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, was awarded a FY17 Improving Outcomes for Human Trafficking of Child and Youth Victims grant. This project addressed several system-level barriers to identifying and assisting child and youth victims of sex and labor trafficking. The project team conducted a comprehensive training to identify best practices and improve coordinated local responses to human trafficking of children and youth; evaluated state program models to identify effective strategies; and used evaluation results to inform and drive statewide scaling.
Kentucky Cabinet of Health and Human Services’ (DCBS) Division of Protection and Permanency (DPP), in collaboration with key partners, addressed systems-level barriers to identifying and assisting child and youth victims of sex and labor trafficking. This initiative completed a statewide self-assessment, resulting in the development of a response protocol for training on screening and trauma-informed care for trafficked youth. This project also updated Kentucky’s child welfare system data to better identify and track outcomes related to safety, permanency, and the well-being of child and youth victims of trafficking.
The Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, in partnership with the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, was awarded a FY19 Improving Outcomes for Human Trafficking of Child and Youth Victims grant. This grant funding leveraged existing law enforcement and child welfare efforts and coordinated with local survivor-led organizations to strengthen a statewide systemic approach to improving outcomes for child and youth victims of sex or labor trafficking. This project improved law enforcement and MDT coordination across counties, established a statewide human trafficking response guideline, implemented local MDT protocols for the response to human trafficking, and developed training for the Department of Children and Families caseworker staff, family resource staff, and intensive foster care provider staff on how to support caregivers.
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, in partnership with the Nebraska Child and Family Foundation, was awarded a FY20 Improving Outcomes for Human Trafficking of Child and Youth Victims grant to implement a statewide cross-agency response to child and youth human trafficking. This project leveraged strategies used in Nebraska’s Connected Youth Initiative action team and developed a statewide protocol for communities, task forces, MDTs, and providers to ensure that all are equipped to respond appropriately and consistently to young people experiencing trafficking. The project also provided new investment in statewide service providers and Native communities to provide trauma-informed and culturally appropriate services for child and youth victims of sex and labor trafficking.
The New Mexico Resources for Engaging Adolescents and Children Holistically (REACH) project was awarded a FY20 Improving Outcomes for Human Trafficking of Child and Youth Victims grant. This project focused on coordination at the statewide level to identify service gaps and create effective change across systems. Through an extensive resource mapping process, the team created a resource app that provides a statewide directory of services and resources available to survivors of human trafficking in the State of New Mexico to be utilized by service providers and law enforcement throughout the state. This project also created a training series aimed at increasing the capacity of service providers and law enforcement in their state to recognize and respond to children and youth who had been trafficked.