Providing nationwide hotline services online presents novel legal questions around the issues of privacy, confidentiality, privilege and mandatory reporting, just to name a few. RAINN has brought together leaders in the anti-sexual assault community, along with online safety experts and technology advisors to help proactively identify and address issues.

RAINN is also working with the National Network to End Domestic Violence's Safety Net project, state coalitions, executive directors and volunteer coordinators from affiliate centers who have seen the need for online services but often do not have the funding to build and host an online hotline service that can provide secure performance 24/7.

:more information/request an information packet

Coaching Boys into Men Playbook Unveiled
Developed with input from coaches and athletes, the Playbook gives coaches a step-by-step approach to discussing dating violence and sexual assault with players. The Playbook is one of several initiatives developed by the Family Violence Prevention Fund pioneered to engage men and boys in violence prevention and is the first tool to engage both coaches and young athletes in efforts to prevent violence.

A survey conducted by Teenage Research unlimited in February found that:

• more than half of teens (57 percent) know friends or peers who have been physically, sexually or verbally abused.
• 13 percent of teen girls in a relationship say they were physically hurt or hit.
• One in four teen girls (26 percent) in a relationship reports enduring or repeated verbal abuse.
• One in four teenage girls who has been in a relationship says she has been pressured to perform oral sex or engage in intercourse.

:Coaching Boys into Men Playbook

ASISTA: New Technical Assistance Project for SA and DV Related Immigration Cases
ASISTA (Advanced Special Immigrant Survivors Technical Assistance) is a new project that provides technical assistance on complex questions arising in immigration cases for domestic violence and sexual assault survivors. ASISTA offers help with individual cases through its consultants, Gail Pendleton, Sonia Parras Konrad, Maria Jose Fletcher, and Sally Kinoshita and their respective organizations. The consultants are available to answer your inquiries and troubleshoot problems in certain individual immigration cases with the Department of Homeland Security.

This assistance is offered free of charge exclusively to grantees of the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), including recipients of state STOP grants. If your organization receives grant money from the OVW or the STOP program, you are encouraged to :register. Once your organization has registered, you may send technical assistance inquiries by :email. Please simply identify your organization’s name in the email. You also may request technical assistance through the ASISTA :website. ASISTA also offers resources and information through its online clearinghouse, available to the public. You may access samples, best practices, training materials and other information.

The Direction, Shape and Scope of the National SAAM Campaign
The National Sexual Violence Resource Center invites you to participate in a national discussion via conference call on Wednesday, July 20th from 1:30-3pm mountain time. Please register by July 18th by calling 800.925.8000. Provide the conference leader's name (Kelly Parsley) and the date and time of the call. For :more information, please contact Eboni Braxton at 877.739.3895 ext.119.

Steps Taken to Save VOCA Fund
On, June 23, the full Senate Appropriations Committee concurred in its subcommittee's recommendation to reject the attempted rescission of the Crime Victims Fund and is recommending a VOCA cap for FY 2006 of $625 million. The full Senate may take action on the bill (H.R. 2862) sometime this week. Even though it appears likely that the Appropriations bill passed by both houses will not include the recsission, it is still possible to Congress to change course as part of the budget reconciliation process. Therefore, it is still important to continue informing Congress of the importance of VOCA and the need to retain the entire Crime Victims Fund. :more information

VAWA Introduced in Senate
Senators Joseph Biden (D-DE), Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) introduced the Violence Against Women Act of 2005 in the Senate on June 8. The bill, which was first enacted in 1994 and re-authorized in 2000, will expire in September unless Congress acts.

"The bill we are introducing provides a comprehensive approach to combating violence," Senator Biden said. "It stiffens penalties for repeat offenders, provides more money for vital services, and will help battered women get the assistance and support they need. It also focuses on breaking the cycle of violence through education and helping rural victims in under-served areas." :more information

Men for VAWA Declaration of Support
Men's Resources International, an organization that promotes positive masculinity and works to end men's violence, recognizes that the decisions Congress makes when it reauthorizes the 1994 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) will determine what options will be available to victims of abuse, how well the criminal justice system will respond to violence, and whether we invest in prevention by targeting resources to children and youth who have been exposed to violence, and engaging men as allies in this work.

Join other men in sending a strong message to Congress. Sign :the men's declaration of support for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act.

Family Violence Statistics
A study released by the U.S. Department of Justice finds that declines in family violence continue, along with overall declines in violence crime. Family violence rates have dropped by more than one half from 1993-2002. Still, family violence as a proportion of all violent crime remained stable during the decade.Many experts have expressed concern that the declines in family and other violence have not continued across the board in more recent years. :report

Internet Safety
NCJRS has created an online compilation of internet safety resources. Publications and related resources on general Internet safety, Internet safety for children, Internet privacy, cyberstalking, cyberbullying, and identity theft are available. :online resources

Sexual Victimization and the Consequences of Life on the Streets
Focuses on the intersection between sexual victimization and homeless youth, and provides an overview of research on this topic area. :research and advocacy digest

CD-ROM Focuses on Campus Safety
The Campus Safety CD-ROM contains more than 50 publications and resource links from COPS, the U.S. Department of Justice, and other government agencies related to drugs, alcohol, and violence on campus. To obtain copies, call the COPS Office Response Center at 800-421-6770.

Utah Sexual Violence Council (USVC) Sub-Committee Member Opportunities
The Utah Sexual Violence Council is a multi-disciplinary statewide advisory council that "promotes a climate where sexual violence is addressed as a priority issue that impacts all Utah communities." The council's vision is to change social norms and improve Utah's understanding of the overwhelming significance of this public health, social service, and criminal justice problem.

As the participation in this council has grown, so has the need for additional participation in the various subcommittees. Currently, the USVC has 6 working subcommittees: criminal justice; community collaboration; advocacy; prevention; nominating; and an ad hoc campus consortium. While USVC members are required to be active participants of at least one subcommittee, additional participation outside of the council membership is being sought to expand the goals and accomplishments of the USVC's mission.

If you are interested in membership on the USVC or on one of the subcommittees, please :email Laurel Duncan.

National Expert Witness List
The National Sexual Violence Resource Center maintains a listing of people from around the country who have experience in providing expert witness testimony. If you have experience as an expert witness and would like to be included, please :contact Debbie Rollo at the NSVRC and provide:

• topic area of expertise
• resume/vitae
• regional or national experience
• history of pro bono work
• travel limitations, if any, within the U.S. or U.S. territories

 

utah sexual violence council
department of health
288 north 1460 west, rm 125
salt lake city, utah
july 27th, 12pm-2pm
:more information

rpeg quarterly meeting
department of health
august 10th, 10am
guest speaker: rory c. reid, msw, program director for the provo counseling center
topic: pornography and its intersections with sexual violence

valley mental health
tooele, utah
july 7th, 8th, 13th, 14th, & 15th, 8am-5pm
:more information :register

university of utah
salt lake city, utah
august 8th, 10th, 12th, 15th & 17th, 8am-5pm
:more information :register

rape recovery center
salt lake city, utah
august 9th, 11th, 13th, 16th, 18th, 20th, 23rd & 25th, tuesdays and thursdays 5:30-9:30pm & saturdays 9am-6pm
:more information :register

canyon creek women's crisis center
cedar city, utah
september 22nd - 24th, 8am-5pm
:more information :register

ucasa trainings meet the continuing education requirements for social work.

SWAVO quarterly training meeting
park city, utah
july 14, 8:30am-3pm
susan mcgee, national trainer/consultant
:training flyer

"cultural competency and domestic violence treatment" and "domestic violence and substance abuse"
brigham city dcfs
1050 s. medical drive, suite b
brigham city, utah
july 15, 9am-4pm
:utah domestic violence council
: to register contact nancy at 801.629.5848

national institute of justice (nij) annual research and evaluation conference "evidence based policies and practices"
washington, dc
july 18th - 20th
:nij conference information

mountain west campus law enforcement association annual conference
university of utah
salt lake city, utah
july 20th - 22nd
:university of utah department of public safety

national conference on sexual violence prevention and intervention
pittsburgh, pennsylvania
september 28th-30th
:conference information