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 awarded a $700,000 Rural Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking Assistance Program (CFDA 16.589) grant to Delta Health Alliance, Inc. in Leland, Mississippi. The 36-month project, titled the Delta Abuse Response Team (DART), will implement a comprehensive, community-based approach to address the critical needs of rural victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking in five counties in the Mississippi Delta region. Key project activities include:

1. Providing social workers to assist in addressing incidents of interpersonal violence,
2. Offering victims access to transitional housing, counseling, childcare, and legal advocacy,
3. Conducting evidence-based training for victim service providers and other professionals serving at-risk children, youth, and adults, and
4. Providing logistical support such as transitional housing, shelters, and violence/sexual assault programs.

The project aims to advance equity and prevent sexual assault in these rural communities.

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 by encouraging collaboration among victim service providers, law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, other criminal justice service providers, human and community service providers, educational institutions, and health care providers; 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. Through this new OVW rural program project, delta health alliance, INC., in partnership with leland medical clinic, haven house family shelter, the center for violence prevention, mississippi volunteer lawyers project and social services collaborative will implement the delta abuse response team (DART). This victim service project addresses the following purpose areas: 1,2, and 3. The delta abuse response team (DART) program is a comprehensive, community-based, multifaceted approach to addressing the critical needs of rural victims ofdomestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking in five rural counties of the mississippi delta including issaquena county, leflore county, sharkey county, warren county, and yazoo county. Specific activities will include:1) providing social workers to assist in addressing incidences of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; 2) providing victims of interpersonal violence with access to transitional housing, counseling, childcare, and a legal advocate; 3) conducting evidence-based training for victim service providers and other professionals serving at-risk children, youth and adults; and 4) providing logistical support for victims and service providers including transitional housing, shelters, and violence and sexual assault programs. The project will address the following priority areas: priority area 1: advance equity and tribal sovereignty; and priority area 2: prevent and end sexual assault. The timing for performance of this award is 36 months.