News

AVA Peer to Peer – Nashville October 2017

AVA conducted our fourth Peer-to-Peer (P2P) regional mentoring meeting in Nashville, TN in early October.  The meeting included 12 administrators from nine different states.  There was significant discussion on many different topics including risk assessments, Muskie reporting, Implementation Plans, Subgrantee site visits, federal audits, and much more. We are grateful to each of the participants […]

Domestic Violence Awareness Month – Activities Across the Country

Nebraska Bright Horizons in Nebraska – During the month of October, O’Neill, Norfolk, and Ainsworth’s Main Street will have purple ribbons lining the streets. To kick things off, on the first Thursday of October, the 5th, Bright Horizons asked businesses, schools, and everyone else to wear purple and to share  pictures on their  Facebook page using the hashtag […]

Sexual Assault Kit Backlog

Today, the federal government announced that more than $34 million in grant funding has been awarded to 20 jurisdictions to help them address the backlog of untested rape kits. This funding will provide communities with much needed resources to: supplement efforts to test backlogged kits in law enforcement facilities; create multidisciplinary teams to investigate and prosecute cases connected to the backlog; […]

Peer to Peer Meeting – Nashville; October 4th and 5th

We wanted to send out a last call invitation to each of you reminding you of the upcoming Peer-to-Peer (P2P) mentoring conference scheduled for October in Nashville, TN. The P2P workshops are generally designed for newer administrators and they offer you an opportunity to have open discussion with other seasoned administrators about effective ways of […]

Board Member Bios and Photos

MaryEllen Garcia – President   MaryEllen Garcia is the VAWA Grants Administrator for the New Mexico Crime Victims Reparation Commission, administering the STOP VAWA and SASP formula awards, in addition to discretionary funds from the Office for Victims of Crime.  Until recently, Ms. Garcia also administered the VOCA Victim Assistance funds.   Prior to her work […]

Male Victims of Sexual Assault Study

Science is finally starting to take the pain of male victims of sexual assault seriously Trauma often isn’t shared. (Reuters/Rafael Marchante) WRITTEN BY Cassie Werber July 14, 2017 Criminologist Lisa Dario set out on a recent study with the assumption that men who had been sexually assaulted would display lower levels of depression than female […]

FY 2017 STOP Formula Grant Program

OVW has announced release of the FY 2017 STOP Formula Grant Program solicitation. You may access the solicitation at: https://www.justice.gov/ovw/page/file/967326/download. Applications are due on June 28, 2017. If you have already submitted your Implementation Plan to OVW you must include it again with your application.

AVA Annual Meeting – Tucson 2017

AVA Annual Meeting 2017 March 28, 2017 Tucson, Arizona   It was great being in Tucson with you and we want to thank you for joining us at the AVA Annual Meeting!  For me personally, it was exciting to meet some of you for the very first time and reconnecting with so many friends/administrators that […]