The grants to enhance culturally specific services for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking program is authorized by 34 U.S.C. 20124

The Women's Initiative For Self-Empowerment (WISE), Inc. received a 3-year, $450,000 Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women under the Culturally and Linguistically Specific Services Program (CFDA 16.016). The grant funds the "Hmong Community Prevention & Intervention Culturally Specific Services Project" to serve Asian American (Hmong) community members in St. Paul, Minnesota. Key activities include: outreach, education on stalking/cyberstalking and grooming prevention/intervention; active bystander intervention training; skill-building workshops on healthy relationships; school-based crisis intervention services; and trauma-informed training for school personnel. The project aims to enhance culturally relevant services and resources for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking within the Hmong community.

This program supports the maintenance and replication of existing successful community-based programs providing culturally specific services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, as well as the development of innovative culturally specific strategies to enhance access to services and resources for victims who face obstacles to using more traditional programs. Culturally specific services means community-based services that include culturally relevant and linguistically specific services and resources to culturally specific communities which are statutorily defined as american indians (including alaska natives, eskimos, and aleuts); asian americans; native hawaiians and other pacific islanders; blacks; and hispanics. Projects must address at least one of the programs statutory purpose areas. Through this new culturally specific services program project, women's initiative for self empowerment, in partnership with transforming generations, will implement a project addressing the following purpose area(s): working in cooperation with the community to develop education and prevention strategies highlighting culturally specific issues and resources regarding victims ofdomestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and providing culturally specific programs for children exposed to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The hmong community prevention & intervention culturally specific services project will serve asian americans (hmong community) in ST. Paul, minnesota. The project will address the following priority area: priority area 3 - underserved communities. Specific activities will include: outreach, education about stalking/cyberstalking and grooming prevention/intervention; trainings on active bystander intervention (ABI); skill-building workshops on healthy relationships (peer, family school environment, romantic); school-based crisis intervention services; and trainings for school personnel on creating and sustaining a trauma-informed educational environment and programming.