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

The U.S. Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women has awarded a $500,000 Rural Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking Assistance Program (CFDA 16.589) grant to Turning Pointe Survivor Advocacy Center. The 36-month project will provide comprehensive victim services in the rural Washington county of Mason. Key services include mobile advocacy and outreach to reach isolated residents, culturally and linguistically accessible services for the Latinx community, training for first responders and service providers, and coordination of the local community response team. The project partners with Cielo (Centro Integral Educativo Latino de Olympia), Shelton YMCA, Shelton Police Department, and Mason County Sheriff's Office to identify, assess, and respond to child, youth, and adult victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking in rural areas. The grant aims to increase safety and well-being of women and children through direct services, prevention strategies, and improved access to forensic medical exams.

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 project, turning pointe survivor advocacy center, in partnership with cielo (centro integral educativo latino DE olympia), shelton ymca, shelton police department, and mason county sheriffs office, will implement a victim services project for the washington county of mason. The project will address priority area 1. Specific activities for latinx survivors will include: 1) mobile advocacy and outreach to reach isolated rural residents; 2) providing culturally and linguistically accessible services to mason countys latinx communities; 3) providing training to first responders and other community-based service providers to increase awareness and availability of advocacy and sane services and increase their understanding of how to effectively link survivors with these resources; and 4) coordinating services by different systems through regular meetings of the mason county coordinated community response (mcccr) team. The timing for performance of this award is 36 months.