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 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 continuation OVW rural program project, community violence intervention center INC. (CVIC), in partnership with CVIC and spectra health, rural law enforcement agencies, including grand forks county sheriff's office, nelson county sheriff's department, emerado police department, northwood police department and thompson police department, local government and community agencies, including grand forks county human service zone, rape and abuse crisis center, and domestic violence and abuse center, rural school partners, including larimore public schools and emerado public school, and local private sector partner rydell cars, will implement the CVIC rural project. This victim service project addresses purpose areas 1, 2, and 3 for the counties of grand forks, walsh, traill, and nelson in north dakota. Specific activities will include: 1) enhancing first response for rural victims of domestic violence, including the use of a lethality assessment and strengthened sexual assault response team (SART), 2) raising awareness of services through presentations and increasing access to these services for victims in the served counties, and 3) expanding trauma-informed therapy for survivors by employing mobile advocacy units. The timing for performance of this award is 36 months.