The rural domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking program (rural program) is authorized by 34 U.S.C. 12341

Rural program funds are used to support programs that: 1) identify, assess, and appropriately respond to child, youth, and adult victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking in rural communities; 2) establish and expand victim services in rural communities to child, youth, and adult victims; 3) increase the safety and well-being of women and children in rural communities, by (a) dealing directly and immediately with domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking; and (b) creating and implementing strategies to increase awareness and prevent these crimes; and 4) develop, expand, implement, and improve the quality of sexual assault forensic medical examination or sexual assault nurse examiner programs. Grantees must use at least one of the following strategies in implementing their projects: 1) implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts and projects among law enforcement officers, prosecutors, victim service providers, and other related parties to investigate and prosecute incidents of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; 2) provide treatment, counseling, advocacy, legal assistance, and other long-term and short-term victim and population specific services to adult and minor victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking in rural communities; 3) work in cooperation with the community to develop education and prevention strategies directed toward such issues; 4) develop, enlarge, or strengthen programs addressing sexual assault; and 5) develop programs and strategies that focus on the specific needs of victims of who reside in remote rural and geographically isolated areas. With this new rural domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking grant award, shelter INC., in partnership with alpena community college nursing program, ascension ST. Josephs health system, childrens advocacy center of northeast michigan under the alcona health center, iosco county 911 central dispatch, alcona county sheriffs office, alpena city police department, alpena county sheriffs office, michigan state police alpena post, michigan state police west branch post, montmorency county sheriffs office, presque isle county sheriffs office, iosco county sheriffs office, oscoda township police department, east tawas police department, iosco county prosecuting attorney office, tawas city police department, northern michigan childrens assessment center/the first step, alpena county prosecutor office, presque isle county prosecuting attorney office, sexual assault nurse examiner training program university of michigan flint, and ywca west central nurse examiner program, will implement a sane/sart project for the counties of alcona, alpena, iosco, montmorency and presque isle in northern michigan. Specific activities will include: 1) hiring a registered nurse/practitioner to coordinate project; 2) providing expanded therapy services across the five county service area; 3) establishing a program advisory committee; 4) establishing a contracted partnership with mymichigan medical center of alpena to provide a services suite at the mymichigan alpena site; 5) establishing a 24/7 on-call forensic nurse examiner team; 6) coordinating with contractor, safe therapeutic assault response team, to facilitate trauma-informed forensic nurse examiner training with on-call forensic nurse examiner team; 7) establishing a compensated survivor advisory board; and 8) providing support to on-call forensic nurse examiners with connections to sexual assault nurse examiner (sane) online didactic training, and subsequently the clinical skills training workshops. The timing for performance of this award is 36 months.