Connect / A New York Corporation

Community empowerment program (cep): Connect recognizes the vital role of community involvement in preventing and ending interpersonal violence. As part of its comprehensive approach to eliminating family violence, Connect established the community empowerment program (cep) to help local organizations across new york city respond to the needs of victims and survivors in their own communities. Connect has engaged almost 200 community partners in their efforts to eliminate interpersonal violence. Since the heights of covid in nyc 2019-2022, and its impact on individuals, families and communities throughout nyc, increasing the cases of intimate partner violence, changing the ways advocates and organizations can support survivor's safety due to quarantining and work from home, potentially increasing the access of abusive partners to the person(s) they are harming. To address these issues, Connect pivoted and expanded its reach online via zoom and other remote platforms. Subsequently we are pivoting back, using a hybrid model that incorporates the successes and innovation from this period. A hybrid model allows us to maintain our reach and meet the needs of our community partners with in-person services while remaining protective and recognizing covid and other emerging health issues are serious and continue to impact certain communities and populations that we serve.