
Advocate for safe neighborhoods
and victim support
Caring
We are sensitive to others and concerned for their well-being.
Trustworthiness
Respect
Responsibility
Citizenship
About Central Division Victims Services
Mission: Central Division Victim Services (CDVS) is to foster a safe, prosperous, and resilient community with a focus to advocate for safe neighborhoods while supporting survivors of trauma due to violence.
Vision Statement: The vision is to be a leader that advocates for victims and witnesses of crime in North & Central Philadelphia. Our vision also includes building bridges to create safer communities and to be seen as the community-based organization that connects resources to the neighborhoods as well as clients we serve.
Our Values
Central Division Victim Services values five principles in serving individuals who are victims or witnesses of crime. When engaging the community, we embody the values of Caring, Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, and Citizenship. These values are the standards that we measure as leaders when building relationships in the community.
Our Purpose
Our Purpose
Central Division Victim Services is a community based comprehensive victim services organization. We serve all types of crime victims in the 6th, 9th and 22nd Police District in North and Central Philadelphia. Our purpose is to educate, prevent, and respond in our neighborhoods as a partner in bringing the resources that will address the recovery trauma from victimization.
Our Focus
- Education/Awareness: Increase community awareness of victims’ rights and services.
- Leadership: Be a community leader and stakeholder
- Sustainability: Establishing community trust as well as resources in achieving our mission.
- Program Services: To address the neighborhood gaps in serving crime victims in a trauma-informed approach.
- Community Engagement: To be a strong community partner. Build strong relationships within our neighborhoods to achieve our mission.
Our History
NCVS has been serving North Central Philadelphia 22nd Police District since the 1980’s. With the assistance of Temple University’s Center for Social Policy and Community Development, they have helped North Central their achieve non-profit 501-3c status in 2002. Between 2002 through 2013, NCVS served approx. 2200 crime victims in the North Philadelphia Community. In 2013, NCVS changed their mission statement to advocate for safe neighborhoods and support victims of crime. North Central also focused their efforts of increasing community awareness of victim rights and services in where they established initiatives that were prioritized. They then decided to develop 5 initiatives: community awareness, leadership, sustainability, program services and community engagement. They also created data on violence in women as well as youth and families which established our community resources. Based on that data, they were able to pull together and strategically position the organization to meet the needs of the community. In 2014, while strengthening our partnership with Temple University, we were able to bring in Support Advocates which are current students from the university. They are an amazing help to the organization and they also gain experience while volunteering as well. Over the next few years, NCVS was able to increase the amount of clients from 211 in 2013 to 762 clients served in 2017.
In 2017, NCVS launched its first women empowerment conference with a purpose to provide women with self-empowerment tools that will enable them to strengthen and establish goals that will contribute to their life-long growth. Every year, this conference is very successful. In 2018, NCVS became the lead agency in facilitating the Community the Cares Coalition which is a youth development youth prevention program. In 2018, we also began to address the mental aspect of trauma and partnered with New View Institute. They provide in-house counseling: individual, support group and peer support. We moved from the Leon Sullivan building, to Women’s Christian Alliance and our current location is 1538 Cecil B. Moore Avenue. NCVS also went from having an Executive Director and advocate to now having an Executive Director and 4 Victim Advocates. North Central Victim Services is a cause driven community-based organization striving to achieve its mission to advocate for safe neighborhoods and support victims of crime. One of NCVS’ outcomes is to become a trusted agency in the community. We want the residents in our neighborhoods to feel that they have a safe place to seek out services.
Our Leadership
CDVS Team Members

Johnathan Davis
CEO & President

Tobi Downing
Dir. of Victim Services

Chelsey Williams
Dir. of Operations

Tijania Goodwin
Community Awareness Coord.

Ashley Lewis
Senior Victim Advocate

Shanice Cowins
Victim Advocate

Jazmine Jones
Victim Advocate

Jessica Tomchick
Victim Advocate
CDVS Board Members
Robert Bruce Hill, Jr. : Board Chairperson
Natalie Dallard: Past Board Chair
Charles Leone: Vice Chairperson and Treasurer
Johnathan Hunter
Megan Scott
Thomas Young
Paula Reid
CDVS Advisory Board
Maureen Holland: Advisory Chairperson
Jennifer Boyer
Gene Cummings
David Chaney
Leslie Gomez
Charlotte Greer-Brown