Mental Health Awareness Month

This toolkit offers resources, and can help spread awareness about the importance of mental health and its effects on physical and emotional well-being.

Please click here to access.

Pennsylvania's Pathways for Victim Services Conference provides an opportunity for victim services providers and allied professionals to join for national keynote speakers, informative workshops, networking opportunities and the presentation of the Governor's Victim Service Pathfinder Awards.

To register for the conference: Pathways for Victim Services Conference Registration

You will receive notice when the conference app is launched so you can select your workshops!

Hotel Rooms are available at Kalahari Resort:

Standard rooms are at the discounted rate of $107/night and the includes the Resort Fee. (This is normally an additional $44.99 per night)

For additional questions, please contact the Pathways Conference Team at:

RA-CD-Pathfinder@pa.gov

2025 Pathways Agenda and Workshops

Attention VOJO Programs - VOJO Lapsing Funds Please Don't Forget To Use Your VOJO Funding By June 30,2025

Recipients of Fiscal Year 2024 VOJO (VJ) funds, denoted on your Award Letter as:

2024 VJ Award Amount $ XX

2024 VJ Project Period 1/1/2025-6/30/2025

OVS would like to remind subrecipients that VOJO funds not expended or obligated from the above funding source by June 30, 2025, will lapse.

As necessary, Project Modification Requests may be filed to avoid a lapse in unspent VOJO funds. Programs are encouraged to file a modification request by June 1st to ensure proper processing time by PCCD.

Any outstanding obligations as of 6/30/2025, should be reported in the Outstanding Subgrantee Obligations column on the fiscal report for the period ending 6/30/2025. An interim fiscal report will need to be submitted once the reported Outstanding Subgrantee Obligations are paid. A remark must be included noting the reported expenditures were attributable to the period 1/1/2025-6/30/2025.

Please reach out to the fiscal staff person listed on your grant should you need assistance. 

Young Philadelphians On What It Takes To Curb Shootings

In an effort to better understand the uptick in the number of Philly children and teens picking up guns, The Trace spoke to several young Philadelphians who participate in an organization that provides a safe place in West Philadelphia for youth to express themselves through music, dance, art, and film

Please click here to read.

The Learning Community

The Learning Community is an online center for training, education, and collaboration dedicated to preventing and responding to sexual assault, domestic violence, and other types of abuse. We bring people together to share knowledge, build skills, and create a future free from violence.

Please click here to access.

New Bilingual Resources To Build Understanding And Spark Change

Each April, Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) offers a powerful opportunity to not only affirm our efforts to prevent sexual abuse, assault, and harassment alongside our partners and fellow advocates—but also to educate and welcome new voices to the movement. 

At NSVRC we believe education is an essential foundation to not only understanding sexual abuse, assault, and harassment, but to understanding that prevention is possible and we can all play a role. That’s why we created three new educational resources—tools designed to meet people where they are and help build understanding, spark conversations, and inspire action.

Please click here to access.

Recordings Of PCCD's Consolidated Standards Are Available On PCCD's YouTube Channel

Pennsylvania has long been considered a leader when it comes to the OVS Consolidated Standards, in their design to deliver quality services and programming led by skilled advocates and staff.

To better inform the field, OVS has launched a series of recordings that walk program staff through each of the standards. These are short recordings, up to thirty (30) minutes in length, available on PCCD’s YouTube Channel: PA Commission on Crime & Delinquency (PCCD) - YouTube. Each recording counts toward OVS annual training requirements. Staff may listen to any number of recordings as they are released. 

The Standards are meant to be a guide for victim service professionals to promote excellent service delivery and to ensure the uniformity of services. The Standards provide the minimum expectations for service provision and ensure professionalism in a wide variety of victim service practices. 

The following recording is now available on PCCD’s YouTube Channel: 

Crime Victim Grievance Standard

STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grant Survey

PCCD wants your input regarding how we distribute funding under the Federal STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program.

Please take this brief survey.

The data collected will assist Pennsylvania Statewide STOP Implementation Planning Committee as it develops Pennsylvania's 2026-209 funding and service priorities for STOP.

If you have any questions, please contact Natalie Novotny-Goles at (717) 265-8735 or nnovotnygo@pa.gov

Navigating The Media Spotlight

Thursday May 15, 2025 2:00 pm

For better or worse, media coverage of crime is here to stay. Crime survivors and victim advocates know the media glare can be unwelcome and intrusive. There are also times it can be useful, such as renewing investigators’ attention on unsolved crimes or raising awareness of victims’ issues and resources for survivors. The National Center for Victims of Crime has published a guide to help victims and advocates navigate media coverage. Learn how to use this guide and get tips about how to protect survivors, including those of domestic violence, from unwanted attention, how to leverage coverage for positive results, and more. Join this panel of advocates who helped create the guide for an informative discussion.

Please click here to register.

2025 Plan VOCA Funded Attorney Training - Registration Open

Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network, Inc will be offering the 2025 VOCA Funding Attorney Training virtually this year, during the week of May 19, 2025

VOCA Grantee Training Schedule

What's Trending In Financial Fraud

Tuesday May 20,2025 1:00 pm

The National Center for Victims of Crime and the FINRA Investor Education Foundation are excited to offer a 3-part webinar series exploring the current landscape of financial fraud. The series will take a deep dive into current trends, common types of scams and feature stories from victims about how these crimes have impacted them.



In the first webinar, we will explore both the tried-and-true tactics used to facilitate fraud and the current trends, including the evolving use of new technology such as generative AI. Participants will learn about red flags and available resources for victims.

Please click here to register.

Trauma Informed Care For Hospital Personnel & STOP Teams

May 29, 2025

2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Overview

Sexual violence is a widespread public health issue with significant short and long-term health consequences. This webinar will focus on trauma-informed approaches for healthcare personnel to improve the coordination and care of acute sexual assault victims, as well as the relevance of these approaches in the context of all patients who may have a history of sexual violence.

It’s important to note that not all hospitals have forensic nurses available 24/7. This webinar will strive to increase the number of hospital staff trained on how to address sexual harm by incorporating six basic principles of trauma-informed care.

We will also share additional resources to assist with continued staff development aimed to equip you with the knowledge and skills to provide a safe and supportive environment to victims of sexual violence.

Speaker:

Dr. Tracey Vogel is an obstetric anesthesiologist in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She received her MD degree from the University of Pittsburgh and completed her anesthesia training at Stanford University in California. 

She received certification as a Sexual Assault Counselor at Allegheny County’s Rape Crisis Center PAAR (Pittsburgh Action Against Rape) several years ago, where she started her work in medical advocacy and education for adult survivors of sexual trauma. This education has inspired her to initiate programs to promote medical “centers of excellence” in providing trauma-informed care for obstetric patients.

​Her hospital-based work also includes involvement with quality assurance processes, education and training of nurses, residents, and medical students, and creation of care plans for high risk obstetric patients including those with prior sexual trauma, opioid tolerance and substance use disorders, and mental health concerns. 

Dr. Vogel is part of the governor’s HEAL PA Taskforce seeking to make Pennsylvania a trauma-aware state.

Objectives

• Provide a clear explanation of trauma-informed care principles and their relevance in the context of sexual assault.
• Demonstrate how to incorporate trauma-informed approaches into routine care, focusing on communication, empathy, and creating a safe environment.
• Highlight the importance of coordinating with other professionals involved in the care of sexual assault victims, including law enforcement, victim advocates, and mental health professionals.

Target audience: physicians, RNs, APRNs, FNEs, and all hospital personnel that may interact with victims of sexual violence; advocates, law enforcement, and prosecutors.

This activity will be submitted to the Pennsylvania State Nurses Association for approval to award contact hours. The Pennsylvania State Nurses Association Approver Unit is accredited as an approver of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

Please click here to register.

Seen And Heard: Recognizing Child Survivors Of Domestic Violence

Thursday June 5, 2025

1:00 pm

Join us for an informative webinar designed to equip Victim Service Providers and Advocates with the knowledge and tools to support children who have witnessed or experienced domestic violence. This webinar will provide insights into the emotional, psychological, and social impacts on children, and offer practical strategies for creating a supportive and healing environment.

Please click here to register.

Foundational Academy

July 23 - 25, 2025

All Academies are held in-person (with no virtual or hybrid option) at:

The Graduate Hotel

125 South Atherton Street

State College, PA 16801

Registration is free and hotel rooms, parking, and lunch are included. Participants are on their own in the evenings.

Registration for the July Academy will be open May 27-29, 2025 under the PDAI Training Calendar at www.pdaa.org. The information will also be distributed via email. Trainings are listed by date; you will need to scroll down to July to find the information. It will not be listed at the top with the Save the Dates.

Applications will be accepted for the above three days only. During this time, those who wish to attend the July Academy will be asked to apply for a spot. Information on funding and length of time at agency must be completed as part of this process. Registrations are no longer automatic. Instead, applications to attend will be prioritized by, but not limited to, length of time at agency and grant requirements. Applicants must be able to attend all 3 days of Academy in its entirety, as well as complete additional online work.

Once prioritized, the top 55 applicants will be notified of their acceptance into Academy. All others will be place on the priority waitlist and notified of such. The selection process will take up to 2 weeks. All pending applicants will be contacted as soon as the lists are finalized.

Additionally, Academy spots are only for those VOCA, VOJO, and RASA-funded individuals for whom attendance is required per PCCD's Consolidated Victim Services Standards. And finally, only 8 staff members per agency can apply for each Academy.

The final Academy for 2025 will be held on November 19 - 21, 2025.