Community Safety and Justice Division Hosts Gun Violence Response Meeting
On September 9, 2025, the Community Safety and Justice Division hosted a Community Gun Violence Response Meeting, bringing together local residents, community leaders, Blueprint Partners, and neighborhood organizations to brainstorm meaningful solutions to the urgent issue of gun violence in our community. This meeting was organized in direct response to a recent incident at the […]
The Community Safety and Justice Division Hosts the Blueprint Partner Quarterly Meeting
The Community Safety & Justice Division recently convened with Blueprint Partners and members of the evaluation team for the Community Gun Violence Reduction Blueprint quarterly strategic meeting, reaffirming their shared commitment to fostering a safer, more connected Champaign. The agenda was thoughtfully designed to balance meaningful policy dialogue with interactive team-building activities, encouraging both reflection […]
Equity & Engagement and Public Works Offer Assistance to DMV in Need
The local DMV office in Champaign is currently undergoing remodeling. During this phase, they brought in the mobile Secretary of State DMV unit to maintain services and continue supporting our community. Due to space limitations and the need for secure overnight storage, they requested assistance from our team to help ensure daily operations could run […]
Champaign County Violence Prevention Workgroup
On Monday, July 14, 2025, community leaders and advocates gathered at the Champaign Public Library for a meeting of the Champaign County Violence Prevention Workgroup. Sponsored by the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, the meeting focused on collaborative efforts to address and reduce violence throughout the county. The workgroup centered its discussion around three priority areas: […]
Staff Attend Youth Assessment Center Meeting
On Tuesday, July 8, staff from the City’s Equity and Engagement Department and Police Department—including Mikal Washington (Community Relations Specialist), Andre Davis (Justice Victim Advocate), Aaron Lack (Investigations Lieutenant), and Katherine Thompson (Patrol Lieutenant)—attended a Youth Assessment Center meeting at the Brookens Administrative Center. The meeting focused on collaborative strategies to address juvenile justice challenges […]
Healing Solutions for Healing Communities Summit
On March 14-15, 2025, staff from the Equity and Engagement Department and the Police Department attended the Healing Solutions for Healing Communities Summit at the I Hotel. This event, sponsored by the Champaign County Community Coalition, Healing Illinois, and the University of Illinois School of Social Work, focused on community building, healing, and resilience. The […]
Pathways to Progress
On Saturday, October 5, 2024 Community Relations Manager, Jorge Elvir, attended the ‘Pathways to Progress’ brunch hosted by the Illinois Campus-Community Compact. This event was centered around gathering diverse community voices to shape the future of workforce development in Urbana-Champaign. Jorge networked with other leaders from the area to discuss ways to collaborate and bolster […]
State Designated Cultural District Meeting
On Tuesday, September 10, 2024, Mikal Washington from the Equity and Engagement Department attended a State Designated Cultural District meeting hosted by the Office of Minority Economic Empowerment in Chicago, IL. The meeting covered essential topics such as marketing and promotional guidelines, reporting requirements, and collaboration opportunities tied to their designations. Participants also had the […]
Neighborhood Services Hosts the Quarterly Neighborhood Leaders Huddle
On December 16, 2023, Neighborhood Services held the Q4 Neighborhood Leaders Huddle. The quarterly huddles will take the place of the monthly neighborhood leaders meetings. The huddles help keep our neighbors abreast of upcoming events and projects, as well as community partner services and resources with presentations from staff and local community partner agencies. Neighbors […]
Community Gun Violence Response Meeting
On July 20, 2023 at the Champaign Public Library from 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm, Equity and Engagement’s Community Safety and Justice division held a Community Gun Violence Response meeting, in response to two incidents this week. Champaign Police Department’s Chief Tyler, Assistant to the Chief of Police for Community Services Joe Lamberson, and Interim […]