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Roca Inc. CVIP Grant Contract
Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement
Malcolm Cunningham
Revised
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Authorizing the Mayor to enter into a contract with the Roca Institute to provide training and technical assistance to City of Toledo staff and CVIP project partners; authorizing the expenditure of an amount not to exceed $175,000 from the Operation Grants Fund; waiving the competitive bidding provisions of TMC Ch.187; and declaring an emergency.
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SUMMARY & BACKGROUND:
The Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) applied for and received a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative Site-Based program. The goal of this project is to prevent and reduce violent crime in Toledo, Ohio by developing an integrated, community-driven, evidence-informed ecosystem of Community-based Violence Intervention and Prevention (CVIP) practice.
This project will create a CVIP Academy and train three Academy cohorts in Rewire Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a seven-skill cognitive behavioral approach designed for frontline CVIP workers. This training will build community capacity to support implementation of CVIP strategies. Training provided will include Rewire Launch Support, Rewire CBT Training, Rewire Supervisor Coaching, Rewire CBT Skill Refresher and Practice Sessions, and Rewire Catalyst Training. Integrating Rewire CBT into the existing CVIP ecosystem will align efforts in different contexts, ensure shared language tools, and allow the ecosystem to better integrate services.
The Roca Inc is a nonprofit organization dedicated to disrupting violence by engaging young people, police, and systems to heal trauma, find hope, and drive change. Roca is the only provider of Rewire CBT training, an evidence-based intervention that promotes healthier decision-making with those at highest risk of violence. Rewire distinguishes itself from other behavioral health interventions due to its ability to be provided in practical real-world settings, outside of clinical practices, where CVIP staff are most likely to encounter high-risk youth. Critically, a 2021 external evaluation of Roca’s intervention model showed that intensive training and support of high-risk youth in Rewire CBT reduced all recidivism, but was most effective at reducing recidivism for violent offenses.
As of 2025, over thirty City of Toledo Save Our Community (SOC) staff and community partners have been trained in Rewire CBT and MONSE SOC staff use a Rewire CBT skill in more than half of their behavior change activities. Peace in Motion, the city’s comprehensive plan for community safety, includes training at least 75 community members in Rewire CBT, with at least 10 being trained as Catalysts able to provide enhanced training, support, and supervision of the 75+ individuals that are trained. The City of Toledo’s Bureau of Justice Assistance’s CVIP grant contains funding for Roca to continue this work and build additional capacity within Toledo’s CVIP ecosystem.
This ordinance authorizes the City of Toledo to contract with Roca Inc. to provide training and technical assistance services in Rewire Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Community-based Violence Intervention and Prevention Academy cohorts and graduates. Training and technical assistance services will include: Rewire Launch Support, Rewire CBT Training, Rewire Supervisor Coaching, Rewire CBT Skill Refresher and Practice Sessions, and Rewire Catalyst Training.
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NOW THEREFORE Be it ordained by the Council of the City of Toledo:
SECTION 1. That the Mayor is authorized to enter into a contract with Roca Inc., under terms and conditions that shall be approved by the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood and Safety and the Director of Law.
SECTION 2. That the expenditure of an amount not to exceed $175,000 is authorized from the Operation Grants Fund Account Code 2016-10201-3G20195STDSTD for Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative Site-Based program grant project.
SECTION 3. That this Council finds and determines it in the best interest of the city to waive the competitive bid requirements of TMC Chapter 187, due to the fact that the contracting agency has the requisite experience to carry out the required responsibilities and to ensure continuity of service provision and data stewardship.
SECTION 4. That the Director of Finance is authorized to issue warrant or warrants against the above listed Account Code in an amount not to exceed $175,000 in payment of the above authorized obligations upon presentation of the proper voucher or vouchers.
SECTION 5. That this Ordinance is declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage. The reason for the emergency lies in the fact that this Ordinance is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety and property, and for the further reason that this Ordinance must be immediately effective in order to ensure delivery of services vital to the well-being of the city.
Vote on emergency clause: yeas _____, nays _____.
Passed: _________________, as an emergency measure: yeas _____, nays _____.
Attest: ________________________ __________________________________
Clerk of Council President of Council
Approved: _____________________ __________________________________
Mayor
I hereby certify that the above is a true and correct copy of an Ordinance passed by Council ________________________.
Attest: ________________________
Clerk of Council