Lisa Liggins-Chambers, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Children's Advocacy Center

Welcome to the Champaign County Children's Advocacy Center

Welcome to the Champaign County Children’s Advocacy Center website. We are grateful to offer this resource and hope you find it informative, supportive, and easy to navigate.

The Children’s Advocacy Center operates as a coordinated, facility-based partnership committed to a multidisciplinary approach in responding to allegations of child abuse. Our team brings together professionals from child protective services, law enforcement, prosecution, victim advocacy, healthcare, and mental health to ensure a comprehensive and compassionate response to suspected child sexual abuse and severe physical abuse.

A child-centered focus is at the heart of everything we do. The CAC provides a safe, welcoming, and developmentally appropriate environment where children can share their experiences with trained professionals. Our goal is to reduce trauma by ensuring that children are heard, supported, and protected—without being further harmed by the very systems designed to help them.

Established in 2000 under the leadership of a dedicated team of local professionals, the Champaign County Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) has continually evolved to meet the needs of the community. The Center operated in east Urbana from 2001 until September 2007, when it relocated to 201 W. Kenyon Road in Champaign within the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District building. Today, the CAC is proudly housed in the Scott Bennett Administrative Building at 102 E. Main Street in Urbana, IL 61801.

The mission of the Children’s Advocacy Center is to deliver a timely, comprehensive, and multidisciplinary response to allegations of child sexual abuse and serious physical abuse. We provide a safe, neutral, and child-focused environment where investigations can be conducted with care and coordination. The CAC supports this process by facilitating forensic interviews, coordinating medical and therapeutic referrals, and assisting with related legal proceedings to ensure the protection and well-being of the children and families we serve. In addition, we offer comprehensive case management and crisis intervention services for every child referred to the Center, as well as for their non-offending caregivers.