The Network

Gender-based violence is a leading cause of housing instability, and safe housing can be a primary safety solution for many survivors. Please join us throughout 2025 for a series of housing workshops for our membership and our rapid rehousing partners. We have selected a variety of topics that survivor advocates, attorneys, and support systems often encounter when supporting a survivor in housing, and we plan to cover each of them in a one hour lunch and learn where you will take away a better understanding of the issue and usable written templates. Each workshop is independent of the others, so you are welcome to join us for any of the sessions, even if you have not participated in others. As designated below, some sessions will be hosted in English and Spanish and others will be held in person to make this series accessible to different members of our community.

ICDVP and Social Work CEUs are available for these trainings. Please be sure to indicate clearly in your registration and in your evaluation if you are seeking CEUs. You can review The Network's policy on CEU issuance here. Please note - The Network will issue certificates for trainings up until only a month after the training. We will not be able to respond to requests for certificates for trainings that were done beyond that time period.

January 16, 2025, 12-1pm: Safe Homes Act Lease Termination and Lock Change Letter (English/Spanish, Zoom). The Safe Homes Act is one of the most commonly used housing protections for survivors in Illinois. Join us as we walk through the law and then draft letters to support a lease termination or request for a lock change.

March 6, 2025, 12-1pm: Security Deposit Return Letter (English, Zoom). Survivors often need to flee quickly and issues can arise over security deposit return. Set survivors up for success by joining us to learn best practices around documenting conditions as a tenant and protections under the SDRA/RLTO/LRTO. Participants will also be able to create a move-in/move-out checklist and letter requesting a security deposit return, in addition to understanding how security deposits can be pursued in small claims court.

May 15, 2025, 12-1pm, Reasonable Accommodation Request (English, IN PERSON). Survivors may need a reasonable accommodation request to equally access and enjoy their housing. Join us in person as we talk through the process of requesting an accommodation, including drafting letters making a request and supporting a request with a medical provider.

July 24, 2025, 12-1pm, Addressing Housing Discrimination, Retaliation, and Denial Based on Immigration Status (English/Spanish Zoom). Survivors who are immigrants, refugees, or who have limited English proficiency often face discrimination or harassment in their housing based on their immigration status. We will share protections under the law but also review how advocates and attorneys can address these issues--including disturbances caused by neighbors--directly with the housing provider.

October 22, 2025 12-1pm, Addressing Housing Discrimination Against Survivors of DV Using the FHA and VAWA (English, IN PERSON). Perpetrators of harm often cause damage at the homes of survivors, leaving survivors doubly victimized based on the housing penalties or displacement that happens as a result of the damage. Join us to learn more about protections for survivors when damage occurs in an apartment, and how we can advocate for survivors to safely relocate or stay without financial penalty.

December 11, 2025, 12-1pm, Confronting Source of Income Discrimination Against Survivors (English, Zoom). When survivors obtain housing subsidies, we want them to be able to use them in our community, but many survivors face source of income discrimination when trying to use a subsidy. Join us to learn more about source of income protections in housing, create ways to track when source of income discrimination is happening, and address source of income discrimination quickly so that survivors do not lose out on apartment units.