Virgin Island Advocacy Inc

Drcvi provided training to more than 210 professionals, 134 parents,and 45 youth in early childhood, special education, and vocationalrehabilitation systems. We trained 75 staff members and 53 parents on the individuals with disabilities education act (idea) and section 504. We taught students about self-advocacy, self-awareness, and self-esteem. We sent out 1802 text messages using catchy slogans to engage parents. We posted 208 informational posts to our social media platforms. We provided training to 346 students about proper hygiene and disseminated hygiene products to 976 students and caregivers. We reached 336 young children and youth through disability sensitivity and awareness training. We created a disability advocacy and rights reading initiative (darri) book club. To date, we have disseminated 108 books.

Drcvi provides protection and advocacy services for individuals with mental illness. We monitored 19 facilities that house individuals with mental illness to ensure that their rights are not violated and that there were no incidents of abuse or neglect. We continue to participate in monitoring of the bureau of corrections consent decree which seeks to address the state of individuals with mental illness who are housed in the prison system. Additionally, we hosted three radio shows highlighting suicide prevention especially among veterans, addressing mental health challenges for young people and setting achievable goals for better mental health. We also hosted webinars on teen trauma, houselessness and mental illness, suicide awareness and handling mental health challenges during the holidays.

Drcvi provides legal services, conducts investigations of facilities, provides information and referral services and training and outreach to underserved communities.