My name is Abby, and I am an MSW student at University of Washington and the Housing Systems Intern at CEGV for the 2023-2024 school year. One of the best parts of this experience has been the opportunity to meet with Coalition community members and learn more about local programs doing work to address gender-based violence. In my last few months in this role, I am striving to learn more specifically the Domestic Violence Coordinated Housing Access Point (DVCHAP) housing programs. DVCHAP is a housing coordination system in King County, managed by CEGV, that aims to provide survivors streamlined and equitable access to DV housing services. As I learn more about these programs, and develop my understanding and connection to this community, I am hoping to share my findings as both a starting point and invitation for further relationship-building and collaboration among providers involved in this work.
For this post, I had the pleasure of meeting with Erum, the DV Programs Supervisor at InterIm Community Development Association. This meeting provided insight into the programs she supervises and her approach to this work. Erum comes to this role after over 20 years of experience working in transitional housing, and manages programs that fall under both a federal and city-level grant. The city-funded programs include a Mobile Advocacy, Bridges to Housing, and Transitional Housing program, while the federally-funded program provides more flexible funding for DV survivors. InterIm CDA’s Transitional Housing program is referred through DVCHAP, while the other programs can be referred directly by advocates.
Erum named that many of their programs do have long waitlists, and that it can be challenging to meet everyone’s needs given their capacity and the rising cost of living. However, she stated that it brings her joy that they are able to help and assist with the funding they do have. Their flexible funding can be especially helpful for meeting survivors where they’re at. They can help with anything from move-in costs to car repairs, which can be crucial for maintaining employment. I have also experienced how impactful and helpful flexible funding can be in my previous role as a rapid-rehousing caseworker, both in meeting client needs and building trust and autonomy. I really appreciated Erum’s emphasis on the importance of this component of their programming.
Erum and I also discussed her approach to supervision and management of her staff. I have been thinking a lot about staff burnout and the impacts of vicarious trauma, which is so common in this work. Erum stated that to combat this, she tries to create an environment for her staff that centers joy and relationships. This involves decorating their offices, laughing together, and prioritizing fun whenever possible. She emphasized that staff wellness is very important to her, as being in a state of overwhelm makes it difficult to remain grounded and centered in this work. Erum stated that she is proud of her multilingual staff and the way they are able to meet varied client needs. She named that the great amount of trauma survivors are facing can make this work especially challenging, and make it difficult to build trust. Furthermore, because there is so much trauma, it is important to keep a welcoming, open mind when considering where a survivor might be coming from when forming relationships with survivors. Erum also highlighted the importance of their relationships with other organizations and community partners in meeting client needs, both through the receiving and sending referrals.
The importance of authentic relationships has been coming up a lot for me in this work and my social work program, and I saw this theme also reflected in my conversation with Erum. It is through these relationships that we best collaborate, as well as give and receive care. It has also become increasingly apparent to me that the micro often mirrors the macro and vice versa. Our formal systems of care and support in this country have not necessarily been built on values of relationship and human dignity, but it is easy for macro-level capitalistic expectations to show up in smaller program environments. Hearing about the ways Erum and her team prioritize relationships–with survivors, each other, and other organizations–brings me hope, because I do think that it’s this sort of micro-level focus that is necessary for larger system transformation.
If you have any thoughts or would like to connect about community-building and this work, feel free to email me at abby@endgv.org. Also, if you can check out my last post about community and the Advocate Connection Space here.