Items tagged: CU Fresh Start

Community Coalition Holds Virtual Meeting

On May 12, the Champaign County Community Coalition hosted its monthly virtual meeting. Representatives from the City of Champaign, City of Urbana, Champaign County Sheriff’s Office, the University of Illinois and Parkland College shared updates with the community, with a particular focus on recent community gun violence. Express Employment Professionals, Yankee Ridge Elementary School, YMCA, […]


Champaign Police Provides Community Update on Gun Violence

Champaign Police Provides Community Update on Gun Violence Consistent with crime trends nationwide, incidents of gun violence in the city of Champaign have increased in 2021, and police are reminding the community of important violence prevention measures and programs that are available for assistance. A shots fired incident is defined as any time police find […]


HACC Dedicates David C. Sankey Center for Youth and Community Development

On January 19, Office of Equity, Community and Human Rights staff (Mary Catherine Roberson and Tracy Parsons) joined the Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACC) for the dedication of the David C. Sankey Center for Youth and Community Development. This HACC EnVision Center was established to promote education and leadership in Champaign County. In partnership with CU […]


CU Fresh Start Holds First Call In Event of 2019

Staff from the Office of Equity, Community and Human Rights staff hosted a CU Fresh Start Call In on Thursday, February 21, at the Illinois Terminal. This was an event where local law enforcement and community leaders “call in” a group of participants to share about the effects of gun violence within our community. Around […]


Crime Reduction Strategies Discussed

Community Relations Manager Tracy Parsons and Deputy Police Chief Joe Gallo were featured presenters at the League of Women Voters monthly meeting on September 20. Staff provided the group with an overview of the Champaign Community Coalition and the CU Fresh Start initiative. There were several questions from the audience regarding community violence. Tracy Parsons […]


Now Available: Champaign Connection Episode 58

Champaign Connection Episode 58 will be playing on CGTV, YouTube, and the City’s website from now until the end of September. You don’t want to miss this exciting episode where we discuss the responsibilities of the City of Champaign Township. We’ll learn about the two primary functions of the Township – general assistance for those […]


CU Fresh Start to Conduct Door to Door Surveys

The CU Fresh Start focused-deterrence initiative has hired a team of local researchers to conduct a door to door survey in selected areas of Champaign and Urbana July 15 through August 12, 2017.  The purpose of the survey is to better understand the experiences, perceptions, and views of residents living in neighborhoods that have recently […]


CU Fresh Start Holds Second Call-In to Address Gun Violence

CU Fresh Start held its second Call-In meeting on March 9, 2017. At the Call-In, law enforcement representatives, community members and social service providers met face-to-face with eleven individuals who are known to be involved in local gun-related incidents and shootings. The message was clear and direct – “The gun violence in our community must […]


Community Relations Staff Holds Presentations

Rachel Joy, Community Relations Manager/Compliance Officer, gave Human Rights Ordinance training to the Christian Women With Convictions (CWWC) reentry program at New Hope Church on Monday, October 17. The training was held in partnership with the Urbana Human Relations Officer. Presentation details focused on each city’s human rights ordinance and complaint process. Tracy Parsons, Community Relations Manager/Compliance Officer gave a CU […]


CU Fresh Start Targets Guns, Hosts First Call-in

On Thursday, October 6, the Community Coalition held its first call-in of the CU Fresh Start initiative. CU Fresh Start is a new approach designed to focus on offenders with a history of violent, gun-related behaviors. Through this approach, individuals will be “called in” to a meeting with community members where they are given a […]