Underserved Technical Assistance Project 
Your Monthly Underserved Grant
Resource Email is here!

October 2018
This product of the ALSO Underserved TA Project is designed for Underserved grantees to provide them with regular and concise information including resources, training opportunities, open solicitations and more.

Happy Resource & Opportunity Finding!
Your Underserved TA Team

ALSO Underserved TA Hosted Events

2018 Underserved In-Person Institute Recap

We at ALSO want to thank all grantees who attended the Underserved Fall Institute in Chicago, IL on October 9-11. With a focus on outreach and services, we were thankful for the insights
 
from all who participated, with a special thanks to our two main facilitators, Avi Bowie and Lisa Gilmore. It was a wonderful time of resource sharing, collaboration, and learning together with the 44 grantees from 25 organizations across 16 states! 

Check out these photos and be on the lookout for our next Institute in July of
next year!






New Grantee Orientation

Congratulations and welcome to the Outreach and Services to Underserved Grant Program to
all FY 2018 Underserved Grantees, and a special welcome to our new grantees !

ALSO is thrilled about supporting you through this grant as your Technical Assistance (TA) provider. In preparation for our Grantee Orientation on December 11 - December 13, 2018 in Washington D.C. we would like you to complete the registration for the meeting.

In order to accommodate accessibility needs and ensure your lodging in D.C. if you haven't completed your registration, please do so immediately. Any questions about registration or lodging, please contact Zarena Leblanc at zleblanc@also-chicago.org.
Upcoming ALSO-hosted Webinar
On November 7 at 1:00 pm CT, we will host our next webinar Sexual Assault & Holistic Healing Practices for Culturally Specific/Underserved Populations with presenter Kalimah Johnson from the SASHA Center . This webinar, will present information about sexual assault & holistic healing practices for culturally specific and underserved populations, with a focus on African-American experiences.This webinar will be closed captioned in English and Spanish.
Grantee Spotlight 

This month we're excited to shine  the light on Casa Fortaleza

Grantee spotlight photos and information provided by Casa Fortaleza.
Casa Fortaleza is a 3-year-old culturally specific non-profit organization that provides therapy, advocacy case management and support to sexual assault (SA) survivors and their loved ones with a focus on Spanish speaking populations. We provide education and outreach through our Promotora program. The mission of Casa Fortaleza is to organize Spanish speaking communities for the eradication of all forms of SA through education and outreach, and to provide counseling, empowerment, support, and education around SA to Spanish speaking survivors in Central N.M.

Enlace Comunitario is an 18-year-old non-profit social justice  organization run by Latina immigrants whose mission  is to eliminate domestic violence in the Latino immigrant community and promote healthy families in Central New Mexico through: comprehensive domestic violence intervention services in Spanish, preventative community education, policy advocacy and leadership development. Enlace incubated Casa Fortaleza and continues to provide support in many areas.

Enlace's 2015 group of Promotoras gave Casa Fortaleza its name. Enlace and Casa Fortaleza jointly wrote the OVW Underserved Populations grant. Being awarded this grant was a huge turning point because Casa Fortaleza hired employees, provided more services, and began its Promotora program.

Casa Fortaleza has the first Promotora program in the state of New Mexico specifically  for SA education and outreach. It is modeled after Enlace's Promotora program and adapted to SA. The Casa Fortaleza  P romotoras are required to have 40 hours of SA training and make a one-year commitment.

Casa Fortaleza Promotoras attend regular SA training and team building, table events in the community and present throughout the city about SA and options and resources for survivors, including the Mexican consulate, public schools with Spanish speaking parent groups, health clinics, at Enlace Comunitario's community classes, and for other community groups. The Promotoras are a part of the organization that offers a strong voice to the community, but they also guide the organization in moving forward.
Grant Administration Tip

A little tip from your OVW Grant Specialist, Kara Moller.

It's about to be grant solicitation time! Are you ready? Things you can do to prepare for solicitation season: 

1) Make sure you've signed up for OVW alerts. To receive an email alert when new solicitations are released, click this envelope icon.

2) Check the OVW website regularly  for open solicitations

3) Review the OVW website sections  and applicant resources.
Non-Underserved Sponsored Webinars*

Webinars

Title:  Building Collaborative Responses to Trafficked Victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Host: Futures Without Violence
Date: November 20, 2018 
Time: 1 :00 - 3:30 pm CDT
This webinar will discuss confidentiality and privilege in the context of multidisciplinary collaborations to address human trafficking. Presenters will discuss the scope of confidentiality, suggest strategies to address confidentiality concerns, and share resources and tools to assist providers.  As a result of this webinar, participants will be better able to: 1) Define the scope of confidentiality and privilege in the context of collaborations with multidisciplinary partners to support survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault who have also experienced human trafficking. 2) Utilize strategies to address and maintain confidentiality and privilege to support survivors of human trafficking.

Title:  Interpreting for Victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
Host:  Praxis International
Date: November 28, 2018
Time:  2:00pm - 3:15pm CDT
Wendy Lau, API-GBV Agencies and programs know how difficult it is to find qualified interpreters. Finding interpreters that are skilled in interpreting for victims of DV/SA adds another layer of difficulty. This webinar will be presented by interpreters who created the curriculum focused on interpreting for victims and survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence and will focus on promising practices and tools used so agencies can better facilitate the interpretation and ensure the victim's story are accurate and complete. 
*To use OVW grant funds for any training & technical assistance opportunities, you must send an email to your OVW Program Manager, Kara Moller, at Kara.Moller@usdoj.gov to request approval. ALSO Underserved TA Project webinars and in-person trainings (including New Grantee Orientation) do not need prior approval.
Insightful Readings
Title: Domestic Violence in South Asian Communities  
By:  Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence
Approximate Reading Time:  10 minutes
Domestic and gender violence manifest differently across communities: prevalence and incidence rates, attitudes to domestic violence and help-seeking, culturally rooted types of abuses, and traditional norms for women and men, vary. This factsheet on violence and help seeking in South Asian communities includes census data on demographics and English proficiency, statistics on domestic violence and other forms of abuse, resources such as links to translated materials and national/international service directories, L ifetime Spiral of Gender Violence, in English and Punjabi.

Title:  Resource Guide for Advocates & Attorneys on Interpretation Services for Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Trafficking Victims
By: Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence: Chic Dabby, Cannon Han, J.D., Wendy Lau, J.D. Consultant: Isabel Framer, Language Access Consultants, LLC
Approximate Reading Time:  60 minutes
This Resource Guide from the Interpretation Technical Assistance and Resource Center focuses on interpretation for domestic violence, sexual assault, or trafficking victims with limited English proficiency.  Resource Guide for Advocates & Attorneys on Interpretation Services for Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Trafficking Victims informs how advocacy, interpretation, and language access can be integrated.
Have Questions?

We are here to help!

For questions about grant administration: Contact your OVW Grant Manager Kara Moller at Kara.Moller@usdoj.gov.
For technical assistance support related to substantive and programmatic issues: Contact your ALSO Underserved TA team at underservedtaproject@also-chicaog.org  
Your feedback is important to us!

Any ideas you have on how to improve this Resource Email or any other aspect of our TA and trainings, please send them to us at underservedtaproject@also-chicago.org.
 
If you have any programmatic highlights, or noteworthy news that you would like to see in future Resource Emails please reach out to your point of contact or email the Underserved team directly. 
Underserved TA Project | ALSO | 773.235.5705 | Email | Website

This project is supported by Grant No. 2016-TA-AX-K034 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, Department of Justice.
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