Interrupting Violence & Empowering Futures, Cure Violence ICT Q1 Highlights

Youth Development in Action: Level Up Lab & School-Based Engagement

From January through March, Cure Violence ICT continued to deepen its impact through intentional community engagement, norm changing activities, and prevention efforts. Our Level Up Lab, a four-week initiative led in partnership with Progeny, and facilitated by Progeny youth leaders, equipped participants with practical tools in money management, entrepreneurship, self care, leadership, and community engagement. The program culminated in a powerful graduation, where participants received gift bags and one young leader delivered a compelling speech reflecting on growth, discipline, and a renewed vision for the future. We also strengthened our ongoing presence at Wichita East High School through a strategic relationship with Reverie Coffee Roasters, a neighborhood business that provides proximity and consistent access to students in an authentic, informal setting. This relationship has proven invaluable, allowing us to build trust organically, engage students on their terms, and create space for honest conversations that challenge harmful norms around violence while promoting accountability, conflict resolution, and positive identity development.

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Real-Time Intervention

This quarter also highlighted the strength of our violence interruption model, stakeholder engagement, and real, measurable success stories. Our team successfully de-escalated multiple conflicts, including breaking up several fights and negotiating two high risk gun mediations that could have resulted in serious harm. In one powerful example, a Program Manager directly intervened in a life threatening situation, physically taking a gun from an individual who was on the verge of committing a homicide suicide, preventing immediate tragedy and opening the door for continued support and intervention. We also supported a young man who, after losing his brother to gun violence, was heading down the wrong path and had little interest in school, falling nearly two years behind in credits. Through consistent mentoring, accountability, and care, he was able to refocus, accelerate his progress, and ultimately graduate high school two years early, a powerful example of what sustained intervention and belief can produce.

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Poetic Medicine

Through collaboration with Hope For The Hood, we worked across cultural lines to mediate tensions impacting both Black and Hispanic communities, reinforcing unity and shared accountability. On March 15, our Poetic Medicine event brought together stakeholders and community members for an evening of art, dialogue, and public education on gun violence, demonstrating how creativity can shift narratives, influence norms, and serve as a powerful tool for healing and awareness. One highlight of this event was giving youth from JDF (Juvenile Detention Center) and JRF (Juvenile Residential Facility) the opportunity to have a voice through poetry. Youth submitted poems that were read by CV staff and community stakeholders, and their works were featured on the T-shirts given to community stakeholders in attendance.

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Staying Engaged

Other notable activities included a spring break series featuring three days of workshops, public speakers, and creative engagement; twice-monthly family game nights on both the north and south sides; a trip to Topeka for Black Legislative Day; a participant Valentine’s Day event focused on healthy emotional expression; and several public speaking engagements at Brooks Middle School, Sowers Alternative School, Gateway, and other community spaces.

These efforts reflect not only meaningful interruptions, but also the ongoing success that emerges when community, strategy, and trust align.