The Texas Council on Family Violence (TCFV) 5th Annual Statewide Battering Intervention and Prevention Project (BIPP) Conference theme is “Coordinated Community Response”. The conference will provide participants with useful tools and opportunities to discuss innovative strategies that enhance coordination between BIPPs and local community systems to protect victims, hold batterers accountable, and enforce the community’s commitment to ending family violence.

The conference will begin at 2 p.m. on Friday, with Judge Roberto Caňas, as the keynote speaker. Following Judge Caňas, participants will have the opportunity to participate in excellent workshops including firearm background checks, use of technology by batterers, and enhancing BIPPs. Later that evening join other conference attendees for a networking dinner at Scholz Garten. This restaurant is the last of the Austin Texas Beer Gardens, has been open since 1866, and is considered the oldest restaurant in Texas. For more information on Scholz Garten and for menu prices/selections visit www.scholzgarten.net Bus transportation will be provided, but space is limited.

On Saturday the conference will begin at 8 a.m. with breakfast for conference participants. Mr. David Adams, Ed.D., the keynote speaker on Saturday, will address participants in a two part general session. Later in the afternoon David will conduct a workshop on parenting and BIPPs. Adams is the Co-Founder and Co-Director of Emerge. He has 29 years of experience working with men who batter and is a nationally recognized trainer and researcher. David has published numerous articles about domestic violence and is Co-Chair of the Batterer Intervention Working Group of the Massachusetts Commission on Domestic Violence. David has conducted trainings in over 30 states and five nations. He currently co-leads the EMERGE fatherhood parenting group. After lunch participants will have several excellent workshops to attend. The conference will conclude with CJAD facilitating a panel discussion on Accreditation.

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On February 27, the Texas Council on Family Violence (TCFV) Support to Service Providers (SSP) team facilitated the first Criminal Justice System Response Training (CJSRT) of 2008. The CJSR Training was held in partnership with the Family Crisis Center in Bastrop.

CJSRTs are designed to facilitate collaboration among community systems, such as law enforcement, prosecution, the courts, domestic violence service providers and other human service providers. CJSR Training has as one of its major goals to enhance local coordination and bring about a more consistent response to domestic violence.

Funded through the Criminal Justice Division of the Governor’s Office, eight CJSRTs will be offered in 2008. Ms. Molly Woodard and Ms. Amy Byrd, with the TCFV/SSP team, will travel across the state to facilitate and coordinate the training in cooperation with eight domestic violence programs. Nine different modules are available, three of which are provided at each training. The host service provider is given the opportunity to select the three modules they believe are most beneficial to their respective communities.
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