The research and evaluation (r & e) initiative is authorized by 34 USC 12291(b)(7), which permits OVW to set aside up to three percent of available funds from most OVW programs to conduct…

The Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women awarded a $550,000 Project Grant under the OVW Research and Evaluation Program (CFDA 16.026) to the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston. UTMB will partner with the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council (HCDVCC) in Houston, Texas to assess the short, mid, and long-term impacts of the Domestic Violence Assistance Fund (DVAF), a flexible funding program for domestic violence survivors. Using a mixed-methods approach and guided by a survivor advisory group, the researchers will evaluate the DVAF's potential impact on re-victimization, safety perceptions, economic/housing stability, and health outcomes. This 2-year longitudinal study will generate crucial evidence on the effectiveness of flexible financial assistance as an intervention for domestic violence survivors. The award period runs from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2025.

The research and evaluation (r & e) initiative is authorized by 34 USC 12291(b)(7), which permits OVW to set aside up to three percent of available funds from most OVW programs to conduct evaluations of promising practices for combatting domestic/dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and to research problems emerging in the field. By generating more knowledge about strategies for serving victims and holding offenders accountable, communities that benefit from violence against women act (vawa) funding will be better equipped to align their work with practices that are known to be effective, and they will be more capable of building empirical knowledge on the efficacy of new and promising ways of making communities safer and more just. Researchers with the university of texas medical branch (utmb) center for violence prevention and temple university will partner with the harris county domestic violence coordinating council (hcdvcc) in houston, texas, to assess the short, mid, and long-term impacts of the domestic violence assistance fund (dvaf), a flexible funding assistance program administered by hcdvcc and implemented in 14 harris programs serving domestic violence survivors. Using a researcher-practitioner partnership, a sequential mixed-methods design, and guided by a survivor advisory group, the researchers will assess the dvaf program for potential impact on: RE-victimization, perceptions of safety, economic and housing stability, and health. Study aims will be examined through staff interviews, program data, and a longitudinal study of DV survivors, with follow-up interviews with program participants. This study will be among the first longitudinal evaluations of flexible financial assistance for DV survivors in the U.S. And a crucial first step in understanding impact of this economic intervention.