Safety in Context: Supporting Survivors & Their Children When IPV Is Present

Description:

When intimate partner violence is present, safety is rarely simple. Survivors often make complex decisions to protect themselves and their children while navigating coercive control, ongoing risk, and systems that may not always recognize their efforts to keep their families safe.

This training explores the intersection of intimate partner violence, survivor safety, and child well-being. Participants will examine how IPV impacts children and families, recognize the protective strategies survivors use, and consider how professional responses can support, or unintentionally increase risk for, survivors and their children. Through a trauma-informed, survivor-centered lens, participants will explore practical approaches to engagement, safety planning, and collaboration that center safety, autonomy, and accountability for the person causing harm.

‍ ‍Learning Objectives:

· Identify key dynamics of intimate partner violence.

· Examine the impact of intimate partner violence on survivors, children, and family functioning, including the protective strategies survivors may use.

· Apply trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and survivor-centered approaches when engaging individuals and families impacted by intimate partner violence.

· Identify strategies for partnering with survivors and domestic violence service providers to strengthen safety and well-being without increasing risk or undermining survivor autonomy.

About the Presenter

Angel Campbell (they/she) is a Senior Capacity Building Specialist with the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence (MNADV), where they support domestic violence programs, professionals, and community partners through training, technical assistance, resource development, and statewide capacity-building initiatives. Angel has more than 10 years of experience in domestic violence and victim services and has presented at the local, regional, state, and national levels on topics including teen dating violence, technology-facilitated abuse and stalking, 2SLGBTQIA+ survivors, power and control, and trauma-informed advocacy. 

During their time at MNADV, Angel has led the development and implementation of the organization’s Comprehensive Training program and supported the statewide rollout of the Lethality Assessment Program (LAP) 2.0 through training, technical assistance, and resource development. 

Prior to joining MNADV, Angel worked as a Felony Sexual Assault Legal Advocate and Crisis Intervention Counselor in Michigan. They earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Social Work from Eastern Michigan University. 

Angel is especially passionate about supporting youth and strengthening survivor-centered responses to domestic violence. Drawing from their lived experience as a survivor of teen dating violence and sexual assault, Angel has shared their story with students, advocates, and allied professionals to increase understanding of intimate partner violence among youth and the barriers survivors may face when seeking support. 

Whitney Adell (she/her) serves as the Capacity Building Manager at the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence (MNADV), where she leads the Capacity Building Team and oversees statewide training, technical assistance, and capacity-building initiatives designed to strengthen Maryland’s response to intimate partner violence. In this role, she works alongside her team to support domestic violence service providers and multidisciplinary professionals in building knowledge, strengthening practice, and developing more equitable, survivor-centered responses to intimate partner violence.

Whitney joined MNADV in 2023 and has nearly a decade of experience in the anti-violence movement. She holds a dual bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Criminal Justice and began her career providing direct services and advocacy to survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, and human trafficking in Southern Maine. She later transitioned to coalition work, where she led initiatives focused on language access, LGBTQ+ inclusion, disability justice, and equitable access to services for historically marginalized communities.

Training and facilitation are central to Whitney’s work. She has developed and facilitated trainings for advocates, educators, healthcare providers, law enforcement, and other multidisciplinary professionals on intimate partner violence, survivor-centered practices, prevention, and related topics. She approaches training as an opportunity not only to build knowledge, but also to help participants apply what they learn to their roles, organizations, and communities.

At MNADV, Whitney also coordinates Maryland’s Domestic Violence Fatality Review process, supports local Domestic Violence Fatality Review Teams (DVFRTs) and the Statewide Implementation Team (DVFRSIT), and oversees statewide intimate partner violence homicide data collection and analysis.

Whitney is passionate about creating engaging and accessible learning opportunities that strengthen individual and organizational practice. She believes meaningful capacity building happens when people have the knowledge, tools, relationships, and support needed to put learning into action and create stronger systems for survivors and communities.