Back to School

As school starts around the country, the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) posted a blog in which they recognize September as National Campus Safety and Awareness Month. As they point out, high incidences of dating violence, sexual harassment and assault take place on school campuses. Since students cannot learn if they do not feel safe, OVW calls for “increased focus on primary prevention of violence and victimization in early adolescence – or even earlier.”

In order to achieve this, OVW has issued a new grant program: the Consolidated Grant and Technical Assistance Program to Address Children and Youth Experiencing Domestic and Sexual Violence and Engage Men and Boys as Allies, or the Consolidated Youth Grant Program. “The Consolidated Youth Grant Program creates a unique opportunity to provide support for both prevention and intervention services; for serving children, youth and young adults; and for mobilizing men and boys to work as allies with women and girls to prevent domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking. The program supports comprehensive child- and youth-centered projects that maximize community-based efforts and evidence-informed practices.”

The new grant program will be a compliment to the Campus Grant Program that OVW funds for prevention, coordinated community response and perpetrator accountability of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking. CALCASA is one of the technical assistance providers for grantees of the Campus Grant Program, please feel free to contact CALCASA with any questions.

As students go back to school during National Campus Safety and Awareness Month new programs and initiatives are taking place at OVW in order to support students on campuses everywhere. To read the OVW blog post click here.

This photo was taken by John Picken.