Federal Funding Secured by Pressley Invests in BMC’s Violence Intervention Advocacy Program

Photos (Dropbox) | Video (Facebook)

BOSTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) visited Boston Medical Center (BMC) to celebrate $370,000 in federal community project funding she secured to support BMC’s Violence Intervention Advocacy Program. This funding will invest in resources and capacity building for the program, which assists Boston victims of violence and helps them recover from physical and emotional trauma. Rep. Pressley was joined at a roundtable and press conference by the program’s leadership and administration and advocates for violence prevention.

“Healing from the trauma of violence is a community effort, and we must continue to invest in resources that support impacted victims in the Massachusetts 7^th and beyond,” said Rep. Pressley. “I am proud to secure this critical investment in Boston Medical Center’s Violence Intervention Advocacy Program and am grateful for our community partners and advocates for their work to help heal our communities.”

Joining Rep. Pressley was Alastair Bell, MD, MBA, President & CEO of Boston Medical Center Health System, Thea James, Vice President of Mission, Associate Chief Medical Officer, Co-Executive Director of the Health Equity Accelerator, Founder of VIAP at BMC, Elizabeth Dugan, LICSW, Clinical Director, Tracie Peaks-Sandy, Assistant Program Manager, Rusti Pendleton, Trauma Response Team Supervisor, Jon Harris, Data and Research Coordinator, Megan Georges, Data and Research Manager, Paul Gregory, Violence Intervention Advocate, Manuel Alicea, Violence Intervention Advocate, Troy Heggie, Workforce Development Coordinator, Tereck Jamison, Community Outreach and Training Supervisor, Ketsy Caraballo, Violence Intervention Advocate, Lavon Anderson, Housing Coordinator, Nadia Tennyson, Family Support Advocate, Lavone Carr, Family Support Advocate, Nina Ng, Senior Communications Specialist, Brian Ho, Marketing Specialist, Carly O’Loughlin, Marketing Specialist, Jeff Fernandes, Multimedia Specialist (Photographer), Andrea Allen, Executive Assistant, Khadija Moody, MHA, Administrative Fellow, Deevena Annavarjula, MHA, Administrative Fellow, and Benedicta Agbodza, PharmD, MBA, Pharmacy Leadership Fellow.

“Boston Medical Center thanks Congresswoman Pressley for helping secure critical funds to support our Violence Intervention Advocacy Program (VIAP),” said Alastair Bell, MD, MBA, President & CEO of Boston Medical Center Health System. “Through its work with clients, from mentorship to education, VIAP has demonstrated that to truly reduce violence in historically disenfranchised communities, we must address root causes of violence by supporting economic justice and expanding economic opportunity.”

“Congresswoman Pressley has been a strong supporter of Boston Medical Center Health System and VIAP, and this funding will help more people recover from physical and emotional trauma and reimagine their future,” said Thea James, MD, Vice President of Mission and Associate Chief Medical Officer. “The VIAP team provides skills, services and counseling to people who are at risk of being trapped in a cycle of violence due to systemic racism, hopelessness and a lack of opportunity. With VIAP’s help and their own talent and determination, they are now able to thrive.”

Photos from the event are available here and video of the press conference is available here.

Rep. Pressley secured the federal funding for the program in the Fiscal Year 2023 government spending package that passed Congress and was signed into law by President Biden in December 2022. Rep. Pressley has secured approximately $35 million in federal community project funding for the Massachusetts 7^th since Fiscal Year 2022.

• On June 18, 2024, Rep. Pressley visited Chelsea HealthCare Center to celebrate $1,150,000 in federal community project funding she secured to support Massachusetts General Hospital’s (MGH) efforts to address the statewide shortage of bilingual, culturally diverse mental health providers for immigrant and limited English proficiency communities.
• On April 22, 2204, Rep. Pressley and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) visited Nubian Square in Roxbury for a roundtable discussion to celebrate the $1,000,000 million in federal funding they secured for the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA).
• On March 28, 2024, Rep. Pressley visited Roxbury to celebrate the $1,000,000 in federal funding she secured to provide emergency childcare support for families experiencing homelessness in the City of Boston.
• In February 2024, Rep. Pressley visited Chelsea City Hall for a roundtable and press conference to celebrate the $750,000 in federal funding she secured for the City of Chelsea’s and City of Everett’s Island End River Coastal Flood Resilience Project.
• In January 2024, Rep. Pressley visited Somerville to celebrate the $2.4 million in federal funding she secured to support the community-led transformation of the Clarendon Hill housing community, an ethnically, linguistically and economically diverse neighborhood.
• In December 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Brighton to celebrate $400,000 she delivered for Amplify Latinx’s ALX Small Business Program.
• In November 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Roxbury Community College (RCC) to celebrate $1 million in federal community project funding she secured for Northeastern University’s Roxbury Associate’s to Master’s Workforce Accelerator (RA2MWA).
• In June 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Chelsea to celebrate $2,000,000 in federal community project funding she secured to improve the Broadway Corridor—home to an array of BIPOC-owned small businesses, vibrant public spaces, high frequency public transit routes, and dense residential housing.
• In April 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Randolph to celebrate $524,000 she secured for Randolph Public Schools to support a mobile library and STEM programming.
• In March 2023, Rep. Pressley visited Dorchester to celebrate $250,000 in new Community Project Funding she secured for Big Sister Association of Greater Boston’s one-to-one mentoring and enrichment programs for girls.
• In February 2023, Rep. Pressley visited the African Community Economic Development of New England (ACEDONE) to celebrate the $643,003 in community project funding she secured for ACEDONE to support small businesses in predominately Black, brown and African immigrant communities.
• In October 2022, Rep. Pressley visited The Dimock Center in Roxbury to celebrate $1 million in federal community project funding she secured to support substance use treatment and programming at the health center. 
• In August 2022, Rep. Pressley visited Randolph to deliver $275,000 in federal community project funding for culturally responsive resources and digital literacy tools for Randolph Public Schools.
• In June 2022, Rep. Pressley visited the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology to deliver $300,000 in direct federal funding for the development of a Clean Energy Building Automation Systems certificate and associate degree program.
• In May 2022, she visited Bunker Hill Community College to celebrate the $1,000,000 in federal community project funding she secured to expand the City of Boston’s Tuition-Free Community College program.
• In April 2022, she visited Randolph to deliver $1,000,000 in federal community project funding for a new school-based community health center at Randolph High School. 
• In March 2022, she visited La Colaborativa in Chelsea to celebrate the $300,000 in federal community project funding that she delivered for La Colaborativa’s COVID Employment Recovery Program.

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