Once a Child Council
The Unity for Children project values the voices of those who understand the impact of adverse childhood experiences such as substance abuse, abuse, and neglect firsthand. Their passion for prioritizing children and the prevention of future tragedies fuels our project.
The Once a Child Council empower fellow community members to effect change, in collaboration with individuals and organizations, to address broken and ineffective policies, programs, and systems that consistently failed to safeguard our children.
What do members of Once a Child Council do?
Our council is comprised of community members and professionals from various organizations across the state of Illinois, who are passionately dedicated in driving a long overdue change on policies, programs, and systems that continued to fail our children. Below are some of our activities:
Safe Space: We host an event where our council members come together in a safe space to share their experiences and discuss the need for advocacy, ensuring that they are collectively and individually celebrated, engaged with, heard from and respected.
Community Dialogue: We organize meetings and events where stories are exchanged to shift societal attitudes, raise awareness, demand action, and call accountability from policymakers and leaders. Together, we will make our voices heard and ensure that our children's needs are prioritized.
Policy Reform Workshop: In collaboration with experts and fellow community members, we dive deep and develop policies rooted in the experience of those who face the challenge firsthand.
Once a Child Council Application
Chairperson/Leader:
Facilitates meetings and discussions.
Sets the agenda and ensures that tasks are completed on time.
Provides direction and guidance to members.
Meets with other chairperson from different focus areas (e.g. Substance Abuse, Domestic Violence, Mental Health).
Reports collective findings to the policy committee.
Secretary
Takes minutes during meetings and maintains records of discussions, decisions, and action items.
Distributes meeting minutes and relevant documents to members.
Assists the chairperson in organizing meetings and coordinating schedules.
General Members / Contributors
Contribute personal experience with existing policies, programs, and systems affecting children and families.
Participate actively in discussions and decision-making processes.
Collaborate with other members to accomplish tasks and achieve goals.
Keep abreast of relevant developments and contribute ideas for solutions.