June is Gun Violence Awareness Month

June is Gun Violence Awareness Month! MONSE and the City of Baltimore stand with our residents and partners as we come together to wear orange in honor of the communities impacted by gun violence in our city and across the country. 

As part of Gun Violence Awareness Month, City employees and residents alike are encouraged to wear orange on Friday, June 2, 2023, in recognition of National Gun Violence Awareness Day. We understand that gun violence is an epidemic and must be treated through a public health lens and, like any other disease, awareness is a crucial component of treatment and healing communities impacted by gun violence.

Wear orange all weekend long and join our partners to honor National Gun Violence Prevention Weekend on June 3rd.  11am-2pm: Family Survivor Network Park, 1704 Laurens St, Baltimore, MD 21217 2pm-4pm: Kevin L. Cooper Peace Park, 300 Font Hill Ave, Baltimore, MD 21223 4pm-7pm: Let's Thrive Baltimore Healing Garden, 1416 West Lafayette Ave, Baltimore, MD 21217

Celebrating Pride Month

This month and every month we wish to affirm our LGBTQIA+ community. No one is alone in this mission to co-produce public safety. MONSE is committed to working with our LGBTQIA+ community to prevent intimate partner violence and achieve our shared vision for an inclusive, welcoming, and safer Baltimore. 

Neighborhood Policing Plan Cohort Applications Due June 14th! 

Applications to join our upcoming FY 24 Neighborhood Policing Plan (NPP) cohort are now open! Neighborhood-based organizations can apply by 11:59 pm on 6/14 via MONSE’s Grant Portal to receive up to $250,000 to #coproducepublicsafety in partnership with MONSE and BPD.  Learn more at: Grant Opportunities | Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (baltimorecity.gov)

#MONSEintheField

MONSE Joins Partners to Kick Off Safe Streets' 3rd Annual Safe Summer Event Series

Last week, Mayor Brandon M. Scott joined representatives from Catholic Charities, LifeBridge Health, and all 10 Safe Streets Baltimore sites to kick off the 3rd annual Safe Summer program at Druid Hill Park.   During the summer months, Safe Streets sites will host events, activities and resources for Baltimore residents to promote peace and public safety.  Members of the public can find a list of events on MONSE’s website as well as the Mayor’s Office of Children and Family Success Bmore Summer Hub calendar.  All Safe Summer events are free and open to the public.

B'More this Summer

Executive Director Shantay Jackson joined Mayor Scott and MOCFS Executive Director Dr. Debra Brooks, agency partners, and young people from across the city to announce summer programming opportunities available for young people as part of Baltimore's B'More this Summer: Engage + Connect youth engagement strategy.  Check out events especially tailored for young people to enjoy at: https://www.bmorechildren.com/bmoresummer.

ICARE LIVE

MONSE's Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Court Liaison Ashley Rivera joined 92Qs Persia Nicole and faith-based community leaders for a special conversation on healing from abuse and domestic violence as part of Radio One's ICARE Campaign.

MONSE Welcomes New Gun Violence Prevention Associate Director

Say hello to Marcus Walker, MONSE’s new Gun Violence Prevention Associate Director! As GVP Associate Director, he is tasked with overseeing and integrating the work of our Group Violence Reduction Strategy and Community Violence Intervention lanes.

MONSE Expands Victim Services, Finance Lanes

In May, we welcomed some more new faces to #teamMONSE. Sharion McClamy joins MONSE's Finance lane as Procurement and Accounts Payable Coordinator. In the Victim Services lane, Genae Carney joins as Community Coordinator and Tierra Morales as Social Services Coordination Supervisor.

2023 Safe Streets Baltimore Mediations

As of May 27, 2023, Baltimore’s flagship violence intervention program, @safestreetsbaltimore, has mediated over 751 conflicts that could have resulted in gun violence. As always, thank you to our violence intervention specialists who work on the frontlines to help keep the peace in our communities!

In line with the Scott Administration’s commitment to transparency, we will continue to share information about Safe Streets Baltimore and other programs that make up Baltimore’s integrated Community Violence Intervention ecosystem.

Remember, quarterly Safe Streets Baltimore reports are now available on MONSE's Reports and Resources page. 

Congratulations, Wendy Lee, MONSE’s May 2023 #EmployeeoftheMonth!

Congratulations to Wendy Lee, MONSE’s May #EmployeeoftheMonth! Wendy is an expert in intimate partner violence prevention (IPV) and has established herself as a leader in the community as a relentless advocate for victims of IPV. 

She brings instant credibility to the work done at MONSE as she is known for her tireless work ethic and uncompromising approach to helping individuals in need. 

Thank you for all that you do! 

In the News

Mayor Scott launches Safe Passage initiative to improve student safety

WJZ shared the following story on the launch of Baltimore's Safe Passage initiative:

ayor Brandon Scott has announced the launch of the city's Safe Passage initiative, a strategy to help improve safety for students traveling to and from school. 

The program is a combined effort between the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE), the Mayor's Office of Children and Family Success (MOCFS), Baltimore City Public School System, and the Maryland Transit Administration Police (MTA). 

The city said it will use data on student involved incidents to determine ideal areas for Safe Passage sites.  The sites will be staffed with Safe Passage Partners from 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., monitoring student traffic and ensuring safe travels for students at the end of each school day. 

The city has set Mondawmin, and Sate Center as the first Safe Passage priority areas. 

Baltimore readies plan to enforce youth curfew using social workers over police in ‘communal parenting’ strategy

The Baltimore Sun reported on the City's summer youth engagement strategy that combines non-law enforcement centered curfew engagement with programming especially designed for young people to enjoy: 

Two days before Baltimore City is set to begin enforcing a youth curfew, elected leaders, police and community partners unveiled a strategy labeled as “communal parenting” that aims to be non-punitive for young people.

Shantay Jackson, the director of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, said at a news conference Wednesday that although past curfew attempts have overemphasized the role of law enforcement, alienating young people, this summer’s attempt would emphasize support, safety and engagement.

The curfew, which will start being enforced Friday, is one facet of a larger summer youth engagement strategy, dubbed B’More this Summer, that will feature city-sponsored programming ranging from midnight basketball to pool parties and concerts, officials said at the news conference.

Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement Executive Director Shantay Jackson Announces Departure

In May, Mayor Brandon M. Scott and Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) Executive Director Shantay Jackson announced the departure of Executive Director Jackson effective June 30, 2023. 

“On behalf of the entire City of Baltimore, I want to thank Executive Director Jackson for her service,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. “She has been an integral part of my administration’s work to treat violence as a public health issue and carry out Baltimore’s Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan. Together, we have built a strong team at MONSE that is well positioned to continue to move this work forward to improve public safety outcomes for all of Baltimore.”

At the beginning of his administration, Mayor Scott appointed Executive Director Jackson to lead the newly created Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement as part of his holistic approach to public safety that combines traditional law enforcement with Baltimore’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS) and Community Violence Intervention (CVI) ecosystem. 

“It is with mixed emotions that I have chosen to resign as the Executive Director of MONSE as I enter into my next chapter of service to our City,” said MONSE Executive Director Shantay Jackson. “I do not take this decision lightly, and it has been an honor to serve the city I love. I have full faith that the team we have built over the past two-and-a-half years will be able to carry on this transformational work and deliver on our commitments to building a safer Baltimore. I will be working with Mayor Scott to ensure a smooth transition ahead of my departure on June 30.”

Celebrating 10 years of providing a safe space

WMAR (Channel 2) joined MONSE and our partners to celebrate the Baltimore City Visitation Center's 10th anniversary:

The Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement is celebrating 10 years of the Baltimore Visitation Center.

It helps families impacted by domestic violence connect.

MONSE's Baltimore Visitation Center bridges the gap for families, providing a healthy interaction for everyone involved in a very unpleasant situation.

Every weekend, the Baltimore Visitors Center provides a free safe space for children, allowing for supervised and monitored visitations.