In 1976, two high-profile rape cases occurred on Utah State University’s campus. This troubled many community members, and deciding to act, they created the Cache Valley Rape Crisis Team. The team was a hotline and calls were directed toward the university’s Women’s Center.
In 1979, Utah passed a spousal abuse act, which made domestic violence illegal. With this legislation, both the need and funding for domestic violence shelters increased. The response team changed it’s name to Citizens Against Physical & Sexual Abuse, and community members began housing individuals within their own homes.
It wasn’t until 1984 that CAPSA gained enough monetary support to allow a shelter to be purchased. The board then hired CAPSA’s first five full-time employees, and on Valentine’s Day of 1985, CAPSA began serving clients.
Also in 1985, Somebody’s Attic was formed to address CAPSA’s need for continual funding. A CAPSA board member created the organization with the idea that all sale proceeds from the items donated would go to CAPSA. Since its inception, Somebody’s Attic has raised more than $1 million to help end abuse. In 2017, CAPSA received more than $60,000 from Somebody’s Attic.
With this new source of funding, CAPSA was able to form the Mobile Crisis Team in 1992. Team members then and now meet with victims of abuse and stay with them as a rape exam is completed or as they recount what happened to law enforcement personnel. Members of the Mobile Crisis Team are seen as both advocates and friends to the victim, and they are there when family, friends, roommates and others cannot be. When the crisis team was created in 1992, it was the first of it’s kind in the state of Utah.
Ten years after the Mobile Crisis Team was created, a new shelter opened in 2002. This shelter nearly doubled the capacity of CAPSA’s previous shelter and allowed for two new living room areas and kitchens.
In 2017, CAPSA expanded again, when it opened the Gail Bird Weinshenker Therapy Center and the Mary Flynn Palley Children’s Center. These needed additions aid CAPSA staff as they provide therapy and other services to all individuals in need within Cache & Rich Counties.
To learn more about CAPSA’s expansions and current initiatives, follow us on Facebook or contact Katie Stringham at katie@capsa.org.
https://www.capsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/capsaLogo.png00Maddie Sotohttps://www.capsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/capsaLogo.pngMaddie Soto2017-11-17 10:34:332017-11-17 10:36:01The History of CAPSA
Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse, in conjunction with Fast Forward Charter High School and the Cache Youth Resource Center, has received a $750,000 grant from the United States Justice Department.
The grant came from the Office of Violence Against Women, and its goal is to train youth, particularly boys and men, to become leaders in the community, and be engaged in violence prevention.
To that end, CAPSA has hired a full-time clinical therapist whose office will be located in Fast Forward, and whose time will be devoted to the teens there.
This new therapist, Alicia Stettler, said she’s excited to begin working with the youth.
“I love that CAPSA looks at everything so holistically,” Stettler said. “They look at the children, the adults and the youth, to see how they interact with each other. I’m very excited to get to know the students and help all of their interactions improve.”
CAPSA also hired a full-time prevention educator, Bethany Balady, whose role will be to teach those attending Fast Forward about healthy relationships, personal boundaries, consent, how to prevent bullying and other strategies to assist youth in dealing with their emotions and challenges.
Fast Forward will also be adding staff to support the engagement of students within violence prevention, and to support families who are currently struggling with abuse.
Jill Lowe, the Principle of Fast Forward, said she’s excited to have these professionals and the resources they bring within the school.
“Many of our students do not have access to the resources they need to be successful,” Lowe said. “With the help of this grant, we will be bringing the resources to them and their families.”
Fast Forward’s mission is to serve students who are at-risk of not completing degree requirements and challenge them in healthy ways. Lowe believes the training students will receive will challenge them in positive, non-academic ways.
“These students are remarkable,” Lowe said. “However, similar to any other school in our valley, many have experienced trauma. If these students can gain social skills which help them interact with others and express themselves in healthy ways, as well as learning healthy coping mechanisms, that will drastically improve their lives right now and in the future.”
Jill Anderson, executive director of CAPSA, is looking forward to partnering with Fast Forward, and she’s very grateful to the Department of Justice for their support with this grant.
“We were one of only fifteen organizations to receive this grant,” Anderson said. “Other recipients were based in New York City, Cleveland and Seattle. I’m grateful the Office of Violence Against Women saw that our need in Logan, Utah is of equal importance to that of these bigger cities. Regardless of population size, we all want to do the same thing, and that’s to change and save the lives of our youth.”
CAPSA has previously received grants from the Department of Justice, and in Fiscal Year 2017, grants equated to 70% of CAPSA’s overall funding.
“We can’t do what we do without the support of the community,” Anderson said. “But we also can’t do what we do without the support of larger, national organizations who have dedicated their time and money to helping end abuse and violence.”
Learn more about CAPSA at capsa.org. Learn more about Fast Forward Charter High School at ffchs.org.
Contacts: Katie Stringham, Development Support Coordinator, Katie@capsa.org, 435-753-2500
Jill Lowe, Fast Forward Principle, Jill@ffchs.org, 435-713-4255
# # #
https://www.capsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/capsaLogo.png00Maddie Sotohttps://www.capsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/capsaLogo.pngMaddie Soto2017-11-14 10:46:192017-11-14 10:46:19CAPSA receives $750,000 grant from U.S. Department of Justice
The Lethality Assessment Protocol or LAP, is a major tool used by both local law enforcement and CAPSA personnel. So, what is the LAP?
Originating from Maryland, Dr. Jacquelyn Campbell, of The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, studied the factors associated with domestic homicide within the state. She studied these cases for more than 25 years, and from her study, she found 20 warning signs indicating an individual was at high risk of being killed by an intimate partner.
Inspired by this research, the State of Maryland worked with Dr. Campbell to create an 11 question assessment to be used by law enforcement. Now when a domestic violence call comes in, officers ask the victim of abuse these 11 questions. Depending on the answers, victims are determined whether or not they are at high risk of being murdered by their intimate partner. If at high risk, law enforcement personnel connect the individual to a local domestic violence shelter.
In the seven years since implementing the LAP in Maryland, domestic homicides have reduced by 60%. Since implementing this system in Utah, more than 1,500 individuals have been identified as being in a high-risk situation. Because of the LAP, these 1,500 individuals are receiving the help they are in need of. Before the LAP, only 4% of these at risk individuals visited a domestic violence shelter or sought any type of aid in preventing or dealing with their abusive situation.
We’re grateful for our law-makers and officers for making the LAP a life-saving part of our response to domestic violence within the state.
Learn more about CAPSA and the LAP at the links below:
The History of CAPSA
In 1976, two high-profile rape cases occurred on Utah State University’s campus. This troubled many community members, and deciding to act, they created the Cache Valley Rape Crisis Team. The team was a hotline and calls were directed toward the university’s Women’s Center.
In 1979, Utah passed a spousal abuse act, which made domestic violence illegal. With this legislation, both the need and funding for domestic violence shelters increased. The response team changed it’s name to Citizens Against Physical & Sexual Abuse, and community members began housing individuals within their own homes.
It wasn’t until 1984 that CAPSA gained enough monetary support to allow a shelter to be purchased. The board then hired CAPSA’s first five full-time employees, and on Valentine’s Day of 1985, CAPSA began serving clients.
Also in 1985, Somebody’s Attic was formed to address CAPSA’s need for continual funding. A CAPSA board member created the organization with the idea that all sale proceeds from the items donated would go to CAPSA. Since its inception, Somebody’s Attic has raised more than $1 million to help end abuse. In 2017, CAPSA received more than $60,000 from Somebody’s Attic.
With this new source of funding, CAPSA was able to form the Mobile Crisis Team in 1992. Team members then and now meet with victims of abuse and stay with them as a rape exam is completed or as they recount what happened to law enforcement personnel. Members of the Mobile Crisis Team are seen as both advocates and friends to the victim, and they are there when family, friends, roommates and others cannot be. When the crisis team was created in 1992, it was the first of it’s kind in the state of Utah.
Ten years after the Mobile Crisis Team was created, a new shelter opened in 2002. This shelter nearly doubled the capacity of CAPSA’s previous shelter and allowed for two new living room areas and kitchens.
In 2017, CAPSA expanded again, when it opened the Gail Bird Weinshenker Therapy Center and the Mary Flynn Palley Children’s Center. These needed additions aid CAPSA staff as they provide therapy and other services to all individuals in need within Cache & Rich Counties.
To learn more about CAPSA’s expansions and current initiatives, follow us on Facebook or contact Katie Stringham at katie@capsa.org.
CAPSA receives $750,000 grant from U.S. Department of Justice
Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse, in conjunction with Fast Forward Charter High School and the Cache Youth Resource Center, has received a $750,000 grant from the United States Justice Department.
The grant came from the Office of Violence Against Women, and its goal is to train youth, particularly boys and men, to become leaders in the community, and be engaged in violence prevention.
To that end, CAPSA has hired a full-time clinical therapist whose office will be located in Fast Forward, and whose time will be devoted to the teens there.
This new therapist, Alicia Stettler, said she’s excited to begin working with the youth.
“I love that CAPSA looks at everything so holistically,” Stettler said. “They look at the children, the adults and the youth, to see how they interact with each other. I’m very excited to get to know the students and help all of their interactions improve.”
CAPSA also hired a full-time prevention educator, Bethany Balady, whose role will be to teach those attending Fast Forward about healthy relationships, personal boundaries, consent, how to prevent bullying and other strategies to assist youth in dealing with their emotions and challenges.
Fast Forward will also be adding staff to support the engagement of students within violence prevention, and to support families who are currently struggling with abuse.
Jill Lowe, the Principle of Fast Forward, said she’s excited to have these professionals and the resources they bring within the school.
“Many of our students do not have access to the resources they need to be successful,” Lowe said. “With the help of this grant, we will be bringing the resources to them and their families.”
Fast Forward’s mission is to serve students who are at-risk of not completing degree requirements and challenge them in healthy ways. Lowe believes the training students will receive will challenge them in positive, non-academic ways.
“These students are remarkable,” Lowe said. “However, similar to any other school in our valley, many have experienced trauma. If these students can gain social skills which help them interact with others and express themselves in healthy ways, as well as learning healthy coping mechanisms, that will drastically improve their lives right now and in the future.”
Jill Anderson, executive director of CAPSA, is looking forward to partnering with Fast Forward, and she’s very grateful to the Department of Justice for their support with this grant.
“We were one of only fifteen organizations to receive this grant,” Anderson said. “Other recipients were based in New York City, Cleveland and Seattle. I’m grateful the Office of Violence Against Women saw that our need in Logan, Utah is of equal importance to that of these bigger cities. Regardless of population size, we all want to do the same thing, and that’s to change and save the lives of our youth.”
CAPSA has previously received grants from the Department of Justice, and in Fiscal Year 2017, grants equated to 70% of CAPSA’s overall funding.
“We can’t do what we do without the support of the community,” Anderson said. “But we also can’t do what we do without the support of larger, national organizations who have dedicated their time and money to helping end abuse and violence.”
Learn more about CAPSA at capsa.org. Learn more about Fast Forward Charter High School at ffchs.org.
Contacts: Katie Stringham, Development Support Coordinator, Katie@capsa.org, 435-753-2500
Jill Anderson, CAPSA Executive Director, Jill@capsa.org, 435-753-2500
Jill Lowe, Fast Forward Principle, Jill@ffchs.org, 435-713-4255
# # #
Lethality Assessment Protocol (LAP)
The Lethality Assessment Protocol or LAP, is a major tool used by both local law enforcement and CAPSA personnel. So, what is the LAP?
Originating from Maryland, Dr. Jacquelyn Campbell, of The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, studied the factors associated with domestic homicide within the state. She studied these cases for more than 25 years, and from her study, she found 20 warning signs indicating an individual was at high risk of being killed by an intimate partner.
Inspired by this research, the State of Maryland worked with Dr. Campbell to create an 11 question assessment to be used by law enforcement. Now when a domestic violence call comes in, officers ask the victim of abuse these 11 questions. Depending on the answers, victims are determined whether or not they are at high risk of being murdered by their intimate partner. If at high risk, law enforcement personnel connect the individual to a local domestic violence shelter.
In the seven years since implementing the LAP in Maryland, domestic homicides have reduced by 60%. Since implementing this system in Utah, more than 1,500 individuals have been identified as being in a high-risk situation. Because of the LAP, these 1,500 individuals are receiving the help they are in need of. Before the LAP, only 4% of these at risk individuals visited a domestic violence shelter or sought any type of aid in preventing or dealing with their abusive situation.
We’re grateful for our law-makers and officers for making the LAP a life-saving part of our response to domestic violence within the state.
Learn more about CAPSA and the LAP at the links below:
CAPSA has a new tool to fight domestic violence
Local law enforcement agencies, CAPSA, collaborate to adopt domestic violence protocol
New program connecting domestic violence victims to resources
Policeman honored for implementing domestic violence victim assessment