justice for children advocacy center

Press Release:

Following an extensive application and site review process, National Children’s Alliance recognizes the Justice for Children Advocacy Center (JFCAC) for its delivery of high-quality and effective services to child abuse victims through accreditation. 

As the accrediting agency for Children’s Advocacy Centers (CAC) across the country, National Children’s Alliance awards various levels of accreditation and membership to centers responding to allegations of child abuse in ways that are effective and efficient and put the needs of child victims of abuse first. Accreditation is the highest level of membership with the National Children’s Alliance and denotes excellence in service provision.

The Justice for Children Advocacy Center has a long and successful history of providing services to children and families in the GLOW region. In 1992, Genesee Justice, a department of the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, helped establish a multidisciplinary team to serve the unique needs of children that have been physically or sexually abused. 

With the support of many dedicated members of the community and the multidisciplinary team, the Justice for Children Advocacy Center opened its doors in Batavia in 1998. As the program grew, satellite offices in Albion and Warsaw were opened in 2017. The goal of the Justice for Children Advocacy Center is to provide a child-friendly location where highly trained professionals provide forensic interviews, medical examinations, mental health counseling, and advocacy services to children from birth to age 18 and their non-offending family members regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, religion, or financial status. 

Since 1998, approximately 4,500 children have received services at the Justice for Children Advocacy Center, and in 2022, 274 children benefitted from the services available. As an Accredited Member of the National Children’s Alliance, the Justice for Children Advocacy Center is dedicated to providing comprehensive, coordinated, and compassionate services to victims of child abuse.

National Children’s Alliance awards accredited membership based on a CAC’s compliance with 10 national standards of accreditation to ensure effective, efficient, and consistent delivery of services to child abuse victims. 

National Children’s Alliance updated these standards in 2017 to reflect the most recent evidence-based practices in the field of child abuse intervention and prevention. According to these standards, accredited members must utilize a functioning and effective multidisciplinary team approach to work collaboratively in child abuse investigation, prosecution, and treatment.

National Children’s Alliance also considers standards regarding a center’s cultural competency and diversity, forensic interviews, victim support and advocacy, medical evaluation, therapeutic intervention, and a child-focused setting.

“As a team of individuals who are fiercely devoted to professionally and compassionately responding to reports of child abuse, we strive to meet the highest standards of care for child victims and their loved ones. Accreditation from the National Children’s Alliance not only validates our organization’s proven effective approach to responding to allegations of child abuse but also provides consistency across the child advocacy center movement as a whole. A team response to child abuse is what we stand for, and it is our entire team that allows us to provide the highest level of care and service to children and families in our community,” said Theresa Roth, Justice for Children Advocacy Center Program Coordinator.

“The Justice for Children Advocacy Center is to be commended for its excellent work serving victims of child abuse. As the national association and accrediting body for Children’s Advocacy Centers across the country, our goal is to ensure that every victim of child abuse has access to high-quality services that result from professional collaboration,” remarked Teresa Huizar, Executive Director of National Children’s Alliance.

For more information about the Justice for Children Advocacy Center, visit them on Facebook @justiceforchildrencac. 

Press release:

The Justice for Children Advocacy Center would like to cordially invite the community to attend an Open House at the Justice for Children Advocacy Center at 304 E. Main St., Batavia, from noon to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 15^th.

This Open House will celebrate the completion of phase one of the renovation of our Batavia location.

We are eager to celebrate this achievement with the community because it has come as the result of eight years of hard work and extraordinary support from countless individuals in our community who want the very best for our kids!

In 2011, the Kiwanis Club of Batavia embarked on an effort to raise funds to create a physical environment at the JFCAC that is as welcoming to kids and families as is the amazing multidisciplinary team members. Thanks to the hard work of the Kiwanians and an incredible amount of support from the community, this effort raised nearly $200,000.

The First Presbyterian Church of Batavia has generously offered the JFCAC a long-term lease to one of its buildings located at 304 E. Main St. in Batavia, allowing us to devote all funds available to creating a space that fully meets the need of our program and the children we serve. 

Construction on phase one of the renovations commenced in March of this year and was completed at the beginning of July.

These renovations have doubled the amount of space available to provide direct services to children and families and have made the entire first floor completely ADA compliant.

The Justice for Children Advocacy Center (JFCAC) was established in 1998, and is the only National Children’s Alliance accredited Child Advocacy Center with offices in Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.

Services available at the JFCAC include forensic interviews, medical exams, victim assistance, mental health counseling, and multidisciplinary team coordination.

Case coordination facilitated by JFCAC enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of team members in the fields of law enforcement, child protection, prosecution, medicine, mental health, and victim advocacy and ensures a child-focused response to cases of physical and sexual abuse.

Since opening in 1998, the JFCAC has coordinated the investigation and response to over 2,500 cases of sexual or physical abuse involving children. In 2018 alone, the JFCAC coordinated 247 cases and served 569 children and caregivers impacted by violence.

The evolution of this plan truly was a community effort and sends a valuable message to the children and families who have been impacted by abuse: You are not alone. Your community supports you. We are all willing to work to keep you happy, healthy, and safe.

We hope that you will join us to celebrate our achievement, our community, and our kids!

For more information about the project, please visit www.justiceforchildrenadvocacycenter.org

Press release:

The Kiwanis Club of Batavia is pleased to invite the community to the Justice for Children Advocacy Center (JFCAC) located at 304 E. Main St., Batavia, for an open house from 9 to 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 9^th.

Kiwanis takes their mission to serve the children of the community and beyond very seriously. The club began a five-year long-term project in 2010 to obtain a permanent location for the JFCAC. The rent for the JFCAC was very costly and the Kiwanis Club thought if a permanent location was secured, the center’s funding could be better spent on services for children.

Partnering with the JFCAC Foundation and with donations from local Kiwanis Clubs in Brockport, Byron, Geneseo, Pavilion, Le Roy, Stafford and Warsaw, the Kiwanis Club of Batavia was able to raise approximately $200,000 for the project.

We are pleased to see these funds going toward helping children in our community that need it the absolute most.  

The Justice for Children Advocacy Center offers a unique, comprehensive approach to services for children who have been sexually or physically abused, or who have been a witness to violence. Services are available to children in the GLOW region.

Press release:

The Justice for Children G.L.O.W. Foundation is pleased to announce that they are going to be embarking on a major renovation of the Justice for Children Advocacy Center in 2019.

Through collaboration with Genesee County, the Justice for Children G.L.O.W Foundation, the Kiwanis Club of Batavia, the First Presbyterian Church of Batavia, and many individual and corporate donors, the Justice for Children Advocacy Center will have a home that fully meets the needs of all of the children and families that visit the Justice for Children Advocacy Center – today and well into the future!

Thanks to a generous offer of a long-term lease from the Church, the Foundation will be using the funds raised by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia and donations from the community to renovate the current location at 304 E. Main St.

The evolution of this plan truly was a community effort, and sends a valuable message to the children and families in our communities who have been impacted by abuse: You are not alone. Your community supports you. We are all willing to work to keep you happy, healthy and safe.

The community is welcome to attend an open house on Wednesday, Jan. 9^th  from 9 to 11 a.m. to learn about the plans for renovating the Justice for Children Advocacy Center.  

For more information about the Justice for Children G.L.O.W. Foundation, please visit their website at www.justiceforchildrenadvocacycenter.org

Press release:

Kiwanis Club of Batavia is getting ready for its fifth annual gala fundraiser, Bidding on a Brighter Future, at 5:30 p.m., Sept. 19, at Genesee Community College.

This event, which is Kiwanis Club’s long-term project, has brought in more than $150,000 over the last four years. The funds will be used to secure a permanent location for the Justice for Children Advocacy Center (JFCAC). The gala features live entertainment, specialty raffles, basket and silent auctions, live auction, and a great menu.

The JFCAC serves approximately 200 child-victims of sexual or physical abuse each year. Services are provided free of charge and include forensic interviewing, medical examinations, counseling, and victim advocacy for children and non-offending caregivers from Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties.

The Gala Committee encourages support from local businesses, organizations, and individuals who are invited to become a sponsor, donate an auction item, or purchase a program ad. Tickets are $50 per person or $400 for a table of 10. There are various sponsorship levels available.

For more information, please visit www.glowgala.org or Kiwanis Club of Batavia’s Facebook page. You can also e-mail us at glowgala1@gmail.com