Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy Graduation of Second Cohort
The Crime Lab hosted the graduation of the second cohort of the CVI Leadership Academy, a program to educate community violence intervention leaders from across America, in Los Angeles, CA.
Guest speakers at the graduation ceremony included:
- Amber Goodwin, Founder, Community Justice Action Fund
- Mike de la Rocha, Co-Founder, Revolve Impact
- Michael-Sean Spence, Managing Director, Community Safety Initiatives + Fund, Everytown for Gun Safety
The ceremony also included remarks from the following individuals who are a part of the CVILA:
- CVILA Executive Director Dr. Chico Tillmon, Crime Lab
- Executive Director Roseanna Ander, Crime Lab
- CVILA Graduate Alia Harvey-Quinn, Founder & Executive Director, FORCE Detroit
- CVILA Graduate Ben “Taco” Owens, CVI Instructor, Urban Peace Institute
The ceremony featured congratulatory video messages from the following individuals:
- Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass
- Congressman Tony Cardenas from California’s 29th District
- Maryland Governor Wes Moore
- White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention Deputy Director Greg Jackson
- NBA Champion, 15x All-Star, and Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett
- U.S. Senator Chris Murphy from Connecticut
- U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Acting Assistant Attorney General Brent Cohen
- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson
Hear from Cohort 2 participants about their experience in the CVI Leadership Academy.
View a compilation of video messages congratulating the graduates of the second cohort.
About the Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy
The Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy (CVILA) is a first-of-its-kind education program designed to deepen the leadership and management practices of senior CVI leaders so they can effectively manage community-based organizations and implement CVI strategies at scale. Its purpose is to provide senior CVI leaders with five months of hands-on education, with the goal of achieving its two interconnected goals: reducing gun violence and scaling the CVI field. The CVILA supports participants in achieving these goals by strengthening their leadership and management skills, expanding their networks, and supporting them in their efforts to elevate and advocate for the CVI field. The curriculum combines classroom instruction with immersive learning labs. These 31 graduates represent 20 cities across the U.S.
Learn more about the cohort
The second cohort of the CVI Leadership Academy, running from May 2024 – September 2024, is composed of 31 community violence intervention leaders representing 20 localities, which accounted for about 13% of homicides in the U.S. in 2022.
Latest Updates
Lake County GVPI director graduates from University of Chicago Crime Lab’s leadership academy
The Lake County Gazette features the work of Tierra Lemon, Director of the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office Gun Violence Prevention Initiative and recent graduate of the University of Chicago Crime Lab’s Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy.
