AVA/OVW Conference Call Summary – February 2016
Summary of
Monthly Conference Call between AVA& OVW
Date: Monday, February 1, 2016
Time: 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time
OVW Staff: Associate Directors Michelle Brickley and Program Manager Omar Mohammad
AVA Board Members: Michelle Bynum, Debbie Tanaka, Julia Fuller-Wilson
AVA Exec. Dir.: Dorene Whitworth
TOPICS DISCUSSED:
Joint STOP Administrators and Coalition DirectorsMeeting:
One of the primary goals of this call was to get an update on the planning for the Chicago joint meeting. OVW discussed that they are still developing the agenda. ALSO has been conducting calls with STOP administrators to gather additional information. The agenda will be available prior to the meeting. Michelle Brickley also discussed that OVW will be holding a conferral session on Tuesday evening, March 29th. AVA confirmed they will be holding their annual meeting on Tuesday, March 29th during the lunch break. Michelle offered to coordinate a lunch meeting with Bea Hanson on Wednesday, January 30th and will let Dorene know once this is confirmed.
AVA inquired into whether states were having difficulties attending based on having to support their own travel costs. It seems that most have been able to absorb the costs – only two states have asked for scholarships to attend. AVA discussed that during the conference administrators would be very interested in receiving additional information relating to indirect costs and PREA. Michelle confirmed these will be on the agenda. She also shared that Marilyn Roberts from OVC will be presenting regarding the influx of VOCA funds. The territories meeting will most likely be held from 1:00-4:00 on Monday, March 28th.
FAQs related to Indirect Costs:
The discussion shifted to the topic of indirect costs. Michelle Brickley shared that the FAQs on indirect costs currently being drafted by GFMD will most likely be delayed as OVW plans to meet with OVC in the next couple weeks to ensure consistent guidance is being released. AVA discussed that it would be helpful to have the FAQs by the time of the conference so administrators would have an opportunity to review them and ask additional questions as needed.
AVA’s Regional Peer-to-Peer Meeting:
AVA shared that they held their first regional peer-to-peer meeting in Phoenix, Arizona on Thursday, January 28th, 2016. It was an all-day meeting that gave participants a chance to engage in meaningful conversations with one another about the day-to-day management of STOP funds. The morning was spent discussing fiscal aspects such as funding strategies for the statutory set-asides, managing returned monies, and documenting reallocations, among other things. The afternoon was more programmatic and included topics like the challenges of drafting a close-out report for one fiscal year when you’ve been operating under multiple fiscal years simultaneously. Other topics included discussions on what states are doing with their PREA funds, implementation planning meetings, subgrantee monitoring challenges, handling red flag reports, etc. We shared resources and tracking tools that some states have developed to help in satisfying all the mandates of the STOP program.
It was a group of both seasoned and new administrators, representing Nevada, Montana, Colorado, North Dakota, Minnesota, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. The setting was very conducive to the all-inclusive, interactive discussions AVA was aiming to achieve and we received very good feedback from those attending. Michelle Brickley requested a copy of the agenda and a list of attendees.
Next Call:
TBA – Michelle Brickley asked if we can cancel the March call, as OVW will be preparing for the STOP Administrators and Coalition Directors Joint Meeting. The next meeting will be sometime after the joint meeting in Chicago.