Deadline: 4-May-23
The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has launched its Grants program to Reduce Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking on Campus.
The program encourages institutions of higher education to develop and strengthen effective security and investigation strategies to combat domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking on campus, develop and strengthen victim services in cases involving such crimes on campus, and develop and strengthen prevention education and awareness programs.
The Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization of 2022 (VAWA 2022) includes three new statutory purposes areas in the Campus Program statute:
- To train campus health centers and appropriate campus faculty, such as academic advisors or professionals who deal with students on a daily basis, on how to recognize and respond to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, including training health providers on how to provide universal education to all members of the campus community on the impacts of violence on health and unhealthy relationships and how providers can support ongoing outreach efforts.
- To train campus personnel in how to use a victim-centered, trauma-informed interview technique, which means asking questions of a student or a campus employee who is reported to be a victim of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking, in a manner that is focused on the experience of the reported victim, that does not judge or blame the reported victim for the alleged crime, and that is informed by evidence-based research on trauma response. To the extent practicable, campus personnel shall allow the reported victim to participate in a recorded interview and to receive a copy of the recorded interview.
- To develop and implement restorative practices.
Purpose Areas
Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20125(b), funds under this program must be used for one or more of the following purposes:
- To provide personnel, training, technical assistance, data collection, and other equipment with respect to the increased apprehension, investigation, and adjudication of persons committing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking on campus.
- To develop, strengthen, and implement campus policies, protocols, and services that more effectively identify and respond to the crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking, including the use of technology to commit these crimes, and to train campus administrators, campus security personnel, and all participants in the resolution process, including personnel from the Title IX coordinator’s office, student conduct office, and campus disciplinary or judicial boards on such policies, protocols, and services that promote a prompt, fair, and impartial investigation.
- To provide prevention and education programming about domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, including technological abuse and reproductive and sexual coercion, that is age-appropriate, culturally relevant, ongoing, delivered in multiple venues on campus, accessible, promotes respectful nonviolent behavior as a social norm, and engages men and boys.
- To develop, enlarge, or strengthen victim services programs and population specific services on the campuses of the institutions involved, including programs providing legal, medical, or psychological counseling, for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and to improve delivery of victim assistance on campus.
- To create, disseminate, or otherwise provide assistance and information about victims’ options on and off campus to bring disciplinary or other legal action, including assistance to victims in immigration matters.
- To develop, install, or expand data collection and communication systems, including computerized systems, linking campus security to the local law enforcement for the purpose of identifying and tracking arrests, protection orders, violations of protection orders, prosecutions, and convictions with respect to the crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking on campus.
- To provide capital improvements (including improved lighting and communications facilities but not including the construction of buildings) on campuses to address the crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
- To support improved coordination among campus administrators, campus security.
OVW Priority Areas
In FY 2023, OVW has five programmatic priorities, of which the priority area(s) identified below are applicable to this program. Applicants are strongly encouraged, but not required, to address a priority area. Applications proposing activities in the following areas will be given special consideration:
- Advance racial equity as an essential component of ending sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking.
- To qualify for this priority area, the institution must be designated as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving Institution; Native American-serving non-tribal institution; Predominantly Black Institution; Alaska Native Serving Institution; Native Hawaiian-serving Institution; Historically Black College or University (HBCU); Tribal College or University(TCU); or Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI).
- Improve outreach, services, civil and criminal justice responses, prevention, and support for survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking from underserved communities, particularly LGBTQ and immigrant communities.
Funding Information
- Awards, Amounts and Durations Anticipated Number of Awards: 25
- Anticipated Maximum Dollar Amount of Awards: $400,000
- Period of Performance Duration (Months): 36 months
- Anticipated Total Amount to be Awarded Under Solicitation: $10,000,000.00
Eligibility Criteria
Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20125, institutions of higher education are the only entities that are eligible to apply for this program. An institution of higher education is an educational institution in any state that:
- Admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate; or students who have completed a secondary school education in a home school setting that is treated as a home school or private school under state law;
- Is legally authorized within such state to provide a program of education beyond secondary education;
- Provides an educational program for which the institution awards a bachelor’s degree or provides not less than a 2-year program that is acceptable for full credit toward such a degree, or awards a degree that is acceptable for admission to a graduate or professional degree program;
- Is a public or other nonprofit institution; and
- Is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association, or if not so accredited, is an institution that has been granted preaccreditation status by such an agency or association that has been recognized by the Secretary of Education for the granting of preaccreditation status, and the Secretary of Education has determined that there is satisfactory assurance that the institution will meet the accreditation standards of such an agency or association within a reasonable time.
- The term “state” means any of the several states and the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(37).
- Eligible entities include tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), to which OVW is required to ensure equitable distribution of grants.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.