The Resource The National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s Newsletter | 2014 Spring & Summer A Safer Campus New Efforts Aim to Protect Students (Cover photo of three college students, two females and one male, sitting and talking on a lawn at their university.) Inside Worn Out? Consider taking a sabbatical Page 14 The Violence Against Women Act turns 20 Page 16 App helps college students talk consent Page 34 COVER: UNDERSTANDING AMENDMENTS TO CLERY ACT PAGE 22 2014 SPRING & SUMMER CONTENTS FEEDBACK The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) invites your comments: The Resource/NSVRC 123 North Enola Drive, Enola, PA 17025 Toll free: 877-739-3895 Fax: 717-909-0714 TTY: 717-909-0715 Email: resources@nsvrc.org www.nsvrc.org Editor & Designer: Mallory Gricoskie, NSVRC Communications Specialist NSVRC Communications Director: Tracy Cox NSVRC Director: Karen Baker, LMSW CEO, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape: Delilah Rumburg NSVRC Advisory Council Peggy Brown, Juneau, AK Susan Chasson, Provo, UT Maia Christopher, Beaverton, OR Robert Franklin, MS, Richmond, VA Keith Kaufman, Ph.D., Portland, OR Patrick Lemmon, Portland, OR Strong Oak, LICSW, Greenfield, MA Grace S. Mattern, Concord, NH Holly Ramsey-Klawsnik, Ph.D., Canton, MA Jennifer Rauhouse, Phoenix, AZ Malia Richmond-Crum, MPH, Atlanta, GA Delilah Rumburg, Enola, PA Cassandra Thomas, Houston, TX Rebecca Ward, PsyD, San Juan, PR Ellen Yin-Wycoff, Sacramento, CA, Chair This publication was supported by Cooperative Agreement #1UF2CE002359-01 REVISED from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PCAR or NSVRC. About The Cover (Photo same as image on cover) In January, The White House issued a renewed call to action to prevent sexual assault on college campuses, and President Barack Obama created a special task force to protect students from sexual assault. With a promising amount of public focus on the subject, the Clery Center for Security On Campus provides timely information on the latest amendments to the Jeanne Clery Act. The Clery Center points out that great education is meaningless if we are not willing to do our best to protect the well-being of students. A genuine national commitment to transforming campus culture is needed, and recent updates to legislation have the potential to enhance campus safety for generations to come. More on Pages 22-24 INSIDE (Three photos are placed at the top of the page. At the left is an image of jeans with writing and pins on them; Denim Day in LA & USA celebrates its 15th anniversary this year. In the photo at top right, President Barack Obama signs the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act in March 2013. The photo at the bottom right is a colorful license plate form the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance’s groundbreaking “Peace Begins at Home” vanity license plate campaign raises money in support of victims.) In every issue 4-7 Contributors 8 Director’s Viewpoint 13 Coming Up 28 Awards & Milestones 30 Coalition Spotlight: PA 32 Coalition Spotlight: VA 42 From the Library Main Features 12 Electronic evidence: Here is what advocates need to know to help protect victims’ privacy 16 20 years of the Violence Against Women Act: An inside look at how far the legislation has come 20 Love 146’s annual Valentine’s Day bake-off is a sweet way to raise funds to end human trafficking 36 Sexual Assault Awareness Month: What we have learned by promoting “healthy sexuality” as a theme for three years 2014 SPRING & SUMMER CONTRIBUTORS Joanne Archambault retired from the San Diego Police Department as a sergeant, having spent her last 10 years supervising the Sex Crimes Unit. During her tenure, the unit investigated approximately 1,000 felony sexual assaults of adolescents and adults annually. She is the Founder and Executive Director of End Violence Against Women International and the President and Training Director of Sexual Assault Training and Investigations Inc. Peggy Brown is Executive Director of the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault, a dual coalition of 18 domestic violence and sexual assault programs across Alaska. Since 1996, she has provided leadership on a state and national level in the areas of primary prevention, legal advocacy, policy analysis, and training. She serves on the Advisory Council for the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, the Program Committee for the National Network to End Domestic Violence, and was appointed by Alaska’s governor to serve on the Advisory Council for the Division of Juvenile Justice. Liz Cascone is Advocacy Manager at the Virginia Sexual & Domestic Violence Action Alliance. She coordinates programming related to primary prevention and has extensive experience in prevention planning and program development, which is rooted in public health and social justice principles. She also has experience developing prevention strategies. She has a master’s degree in social work. Annie Gebhardt is a Training Specialist at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, where she develops e-learning resources and provides technical assistance regarding sexual violence with a focus on primary prevention. She joined the movement to end sexual and domestic violence in 1999, and has worked with survivor advocacy and violence prevention programs in Ohio, New Hampshire, California, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. She has a master’s degree in public health and a bachelor’s degree in women’s studies and sociology. Patricia Giggans is the Executive Director of Peace Over Violence, a sexual and domestic violence, stalking, child abuse, and youth violence prevention center headquartered in Los Angeles. She has been a leader in the movement to end violence against women and children for more than 30 years. She has a Master of Arts degree. Monika Johnson Hostler is Executive Director of the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA). Before NCCASA, Monika worked as a Crisis Intervention Coordinator for the rape crisis center in Scotland County, N.C. Monika has been an activist in the social justice movement for more than 15 years. In addition to working on behalf of 90 rape crisis centers in North Carolina, she serves as the board chair of the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence. She was appointed by the Obama administration to serve on the National Advisory Committee on Violence Against Women. Recently, she was elected to the Wake County School Board. Lisalyn R. Jacobs is Vice President of Government Relations for Legal Momentum, where she is the chief lobbyist and policy expert on a variety of issues, including violence against women, poverty, and civil rights. She lives in the Washington, D.C. area and is a single mom. Alison Kiss is the Executive Director of the Clery Center for Security On Campus (formerly Security On Campus Inc.). Her experience includes crisis counseling, prevention education, and health promotion. She has served as an expert witness in campus sexual assault cases and is affiliated with various professional organizations. In 2008, she was a member of the National Attorneys General Task Force on School and Campus Safety. She has presented nationally and internationally on campus safety, crisis response, threat assessment, Clery Act compliance, and sexual assault. Tonya Lovelace is Senior Director of Women of Color Network (WOCN), a project of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence. She formerly was an adjunct instructor for several accredited universities. She leads WOCN with almost 20 years of experience in direct service, advocacy, systems change, project development and management, and national, state, and local anti-oppression and cultural competency training within the anti-violence against women movement. She has two graduate degrees. Grace Mattern was Executive Director of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence for 30 years and has served on numerous statewide and national boards. Currently Vice Chair of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s Advisory Council, she is the author of two books of poetry, and has been widely published in journals and blogs at www.gracemattern.com. Anne Menard is an activist who has worked on policy, practice, and research issues affecting domestic violence and sexual assault survivors since 1976. She served as a senior consultant to the Family Violence and Services Program/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during 2005, then returned as Director of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, a position she previously held from 1994-99. Keith Van Norman is the Health Promotion Marketing Manager at the University of Oregon (UO) Health Center. Keith, along with a small army of collaborators, created the SexPositive app to put shame-free information about sexual health in the pocket of every UO student and help build a culture of consent on campus. Terri Poore is the Sexual Assault Services Program Technical Assistance Specialist with the National Sexual Assault Coalition Resource Sharing Project based at the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault. She also is a policy advocate with the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence. She has worked in the anti-sexual violence field for the past 20 years, including 13 years at the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence. Previously, Terri was the Rape Crisis Program Coordinator at a dual-services program and a victim advocate with a prosecutor’s office. She received a master’s degree in social work from Florida State University. Pat Reuss has worked in Washington, D.C., as a women’s rights advocate since 1979 and is semi-retired, volunteering for the National Organization for Women (NOW) and NOW Political Action Site, and serving on the steering committee of the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence Against Women. She led the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund’s D.C. office and coordinated coalition efforts to pass the 1994 Violence Against Women Act. She also has helped pass the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, Family and Medical Leave Act tax and pension reform, and regularly defends women’s civil, human and reproductive rights, Title IX, and programs and funding for low- and no-income women and children. Saswati Sarkar is the Prevention Program Manager at the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault. She oversees prevention initiatives, manages the program portfolio of the New York State Department of Health designated Center of Excellence in Primary Prevention, and provides technical assistance to rape crisis and sexual violence programs statewide. Prior to joining the alliance, she worked as the Technical Assistance and Training Manager at Manavi — a South Asian organization working to end violence against women — for more than six years, and served on the Faculty of Advocacy Learning Center, a national advocacy training project. Teresa Scalzo, Esq., is a former prosecutor from Easton, Pa., and former Director of the National Center for the Prosecution of Violence Against Women, a division of the National District Attorneys Association. For more than a decade, she has trained and consulted with prosecutors, police, and allied professionals on sexual assault prosecution. Liz Zadnik is the Capacity Building Specialist at New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and formerly was the Education and Resource Coordinator at the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape. She has worked in the violence prevention and reproductive justice movements as a community educator and organizer. She has a master’s degree in community psychology and social change from Penn State University, concentrating on community diversity and gender issues. Her work focuses on supporting, developing, and evaluating community-based projects, working toward social change, and eliminating sexual violence. We’d love to hear from you. Be a contributor. To have your voice featured in an upcoming issue, email story ideas to resources@nsvrc.org. Check us out online Read the latest news and information online at www.nsvrc.org Post your event on our national calendar at www.nsvrc.org/calendar View new resources at www.nsvrc.org/publications The NSVRC is on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Youtube, and Pinterest. DIRECTOR’S VIEWPOINT KAREN BAKER, NSVRC DIRECTOR Do I say “sexual abuse” or “sexual assault”; “victim” or “survivor”? How is it that saying “be a responsible bystander” and “don’t be a bystander” can mean the same thing? I have these conversations every day. But the one that confounds me the most is the term “sexual violence.” I hear comments such as: “What does that have to do with children?” “That doesn’t sound as serious as ‘sexual assault.’” “Can you use the word ‘violence’ if there is no physical injury?” “That’s the same as domestic violence, right?” And so on. I’ll admit that I take the confusion over this term more personally than some of the others, since it’s in our name at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. I want to state, for the record, that I consider sexual violence to be an inclusive term that encompasses all types of unwanted or nonconsensual sexual behaviors and activities — whether they involve physical touching or not, and regardless of age. It certainly can include physical violence, but that’s not required for using the term. Often it involves manipulation or coercion. The behaviors can be damaging in a deeply personal and violating way, and they are sexual in nature. And yes, this most definitely does include child sexual abuse. As current president of the National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation, I am particularly focused on preventing child sexual abuse. The coalition is comprised of more than 40 national leaders and organizations committed to safety for all children. There are a few sexual assault coalitions or rape crisis centers involved with this growing coalition thus far. I am curious as to why there aren’t more, and I encourage you to consider joining us. In March, we had our annual in-person meeting in Huntsville, Ala. where we had lively discussions about prevention, policies, and children. (Read more about our meeting on Page 25.) In closing, my word for the day is “invitation” (and its various forms): • I invite you to check out the website at www.preventtogether.org and consider joining. • I invite you to make a stronger public commitment to preventing child sexual abuse • And I invite you to join us at the National Sexual Assault Conference in Pittsburgh, Pa., from Aug. 20-22. In Partnership, Karen L. Baker GAIL BURNS-SMITH AWARD HONORS Eileen Recktenwald, below, is the 2014 recipient of the Gail Burns-Smith Award, given annually by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers. Recktenwald is the Executive Director of the Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs, Inc. (KASAP) in Frankfort, Ky. Recktenwald led KASAP as the organization worked with Kentucky’s legislators on bills ranging in topic from sexual assault nurse examiners to child sex abuse to interpersonal violence and more. Under Recktenwald’s guidance, Kentucky established the State Prevention Team that created a statewide sexual violence plan. When the Prison Rape Elimination Act passed in Kentucky, Eileen sat on committees, testified in front of legislators, provided extensive trainings on sexual assault in prisons, and convinced 13 of the state’s rape crisis centers that working with inmates who have been victimized — many of whom also were convicted sex offenders — was important. Congratulations, Eileen! Details The Gail Burns-Smith Award recognizes those preventing sexual violence by facilitating partnerships between victim advocates and those working in sex offender management and treatment. Want to nominate someone? Nominations for the next Gail Burns-Smith Award will be accepted beginning in early 2015. Visit www.nsvrc.org/gbs-award for more information. Online For more about the Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs, visit www.kasap.org. THE ART OF COLLABORATION Prevention Innovations makes research to practice look easy By Grace Mattern Chair-Elect, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center Advisory Council (There are two images with this article. 1. Photo of a group of people standing in a row -- Pictured are members of University of New Hampshire’s Prevention Innovations team: Sharyn Potter, co-director and associate professor of sociology; Jane Stapleton, co-director; Vicki Banyard, research and evaluation consultant and professor of psychology; Mary Mayhew, prevention and direct services specialist; Mary Moynihan, prevention and evaluation coordinator; Katie Edwards, assistant professor of psychology; Robert Eckstein, lead trainer and curriculum development specialist, and lecturer in psychology; and Sharon Murphy, associate professor of social work and research to practice specialist. 2. A Know Your Power Bystander Social Marketing Campaign image shows three split frames. On the left, a girl wipes a tear from her eye as a male says, “It’s not your fault.” In the center, a female tells a friend, “Last night, I didn’t want to have sex, but he forced me to. … He raped me.” On the right, a male tells another male, “I believe you. He raped you; it happens to guys too.” The campaign was developed by the University of New Hampshire’s Prevention Innovations: Research and Practices for Ending Violence Against Women. Know Your Power® is a federally registered trademark of the University of New Hampshire and is used here with permission. ) You don’t have to look far into the literature and research on preventing sexual abuse, relationship violence, and stalking to find Prevention Innovations and its members. The new information packet released by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, Engaging Bystanders to Prevent Sexual Violence: A Guide for Preventionists cites two programs created by Prevention Innovations, Know Your Power® and Bringing in the Bystander®. The NSVRC’s Bystander Intervention Resources Web page is full of articles by Prevention Innovations researchers, which highlight the organization’s evidence-based programs. Prevention Innovations has built its reputation through focused research and evaluation, primarily on the University of New Hampshire (UNH) campus. What many people don’t know is that Prevention Innovations members have always made sure that their work is grounded in deep collaboration with practitioners. Established in October 2006, Prevention Innovations is a research and training unit at UNH that develops, implements and evaluates programs, policies, and practices to help end violence against women. A multidisciplinary center, it includes faculty from the sociology, psychology, social work, and justice studies departments, as well as from the women’s studies program and law school. It also includes practitioners. Prevention Innovations members have published 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and produced 20 reports focused on prevention programs. Prevention Innovations’ bystander work began with an email I sent to Vicki Banyard more than 10 years ago, passing along a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) request for proposals. I thought she and other researchers at UNH might be interested in applying. I knew Vicki and her colleagues, Jane Stapleton, Sharyn Potter and Mary Moynihan, through their involvement in the campus-based rape crisis program and their research on unwanted sexual experiences research at UNH. Vicki responded by asking, “What would you like to know?” After talking with the member programs of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence (NHCADSV), where I was then Executive Director, I said that we wanted to know more about the role of bystanders in preventing sexual violence. The researchers received an NIJ grant and began work that would lead to the development of Prevention Innovations, starting with an evaluation of the bystander education that Elizabethe Plante — then-director of the campus rape crisis program — had begun. The Bringing in the Bystander® program grew out of research funded by NIJ, and has now been adapted by more than 50 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, and piloted for the U.S. Army in Europe. Know Your Power® is the only evaluated social marketing campaign on bystander intervention in the field of sexual and relationship violence prevention, and has been widely used. Prevention Innovations’ expertise is regularly sought by national and international leaders working to end violence against women. Prevention Innovations researchers have met with officials from the White House, U.S. Senate and Congress, and the UK Home Office. Prevention Innovations’ commitment to researcher-practitioner collaborations extends well beyond bystander intervention. In my years at NHCADSV, Prevention Innovations members collaborated on state-level prevalence surveys of domestic and sexual violence against women and men, a study of the criminal justice system’s response to sexual assault, evaluation of a trauma-informed victim advocate training program, and assessment of statewide capacity to provide services for children exposed to violence in their homes. Most recently, Prevention Innovations has conducted a comprehensive Evaluation Institute for local crisis centers’ prevention education staff, providing training in the theory and application of evaluation. Advocates were given tools to create measurable outcomes for their prevention programs, and then to measure those outcomes. How can we know whether our prevention efforts are working if we don’t know how to evaluate them? Prevention Innovations helps find answers. Prevention Innovations’ commitment to working with the practitioner community across the country is remarkable. The organization does not proceed with any project focused on violence against women — from reviewing questions on a survey exploring the effects of victimization on employment to having advocates verify the accuracy of a research paper that references federal funding sources — without including advocates. Team members know that they are the experts on evaluation and research, but advocates are the experts on how survivors understand the violence they’ve experienced, how communities respond to survivors, and what would be most helpful to learn as we work together to end sexual violence. In November, NHCADSV selected Prevention Innovations for inclusion in its hall of fame, an honor designed to “celebrate the work of individuals that have a passion for ending domestic and sexual violence and have gone above and beyond in their efforts to make New Hampshire a safer state.” Prevention Innovations’ members have consistently demonstrated their passion for ending sexual violence. Just as effective advocates work to be sure the voices of survivors are central to their work, Prevention Innovations keeps the voices of practitioners central in their work. Shortly before leaving my position as Executive Director of NHCADSV two years ago, two members of Prevention Innovations asked me to lunch. Over lunch they proposed that I join them as a research-to-practice specialist. It was an easy yes. Online For more about Prevention Innovations, visit http://cola.unh.edu/prevention-innovations. PROTECTING VICTIMS’ PRIVACY Electronic evidence: What advocates need to know By Teresa Scalzo, Esq. (Illustration of a smartphone with a red background and a hand motioning to “stop” on the screen) All too often, sexual assault cases rely on personal accounts of what happened, particularly when the victim and offender know each other. It is rare that physical or medical evidence conclusively proves that a sexual assault occurred. When these cases go to trial, the consent defense has a strong chance of succeeding. However, things are changing. Prosecutors are becoming increasingly skilled at using electronic evidence to corroborate the victim’s timeline of events, allowing more offenders to be held accountable. Conversely, defense attorneys are increasingly seeking to use electronic evidence to disprove the sexual assault or call into question the victim’s credibility. Electronic evidence exists in many forms. The most common types used in sexual assault cases are emails, social media communications, photos, texts, and call logs from cellphones. While electronic evidence might be valuable in proving a case, the collection of such evidence could cause additional pain and trauma for victims, depending on the type of evidence and method of collection. Recovery of electronic evidence from a cellphone might result in two distinct violations to victims. First, tools exist for copying the contents of a cellphone, but this is not always possible. Consequently, in order to preserve evidence, investigators could request that victims turn over their cellphones, thereby depriving them of what is most likely their primary mode of communication and making them feel isolated. Even if police do not have to seize their phones, victims might feel as though their privacy has been invaded. Although it is possible to recover only distinct pieces of evidence such as text messages with the offender, the more common practice is to collect all text messages with anyone during the relevant time period. Failure to do so can result in an acquittal at trial when the defense argues that the police did not preserve the texts because the victim had something to hide. The second major type of electronic evidence includes emails and other social media communications. These are typically recovered by searching the victims’ or suspects’ computers or requested from the electronic service provider. Police might need to seize the entire contents of the computer. At the very least, they will likely need all of the communications in the relevant time frame. As with cellphones, the invasion of privacy can be very painful. In addition, friends and family might feel violated if their communications are seized, and victims might blame themselves for the loss of privacy experienced by their loved ones. Participating in a multidisciplinary Sexual Assault Response Team is critical. Prosecutors and police can help advocates understand the need for electronic evidence, while advocates can educate police and prosecutors on the impact collecting electronic evidence could have on victims. Victims’ rights attorneys can provide insight into the availability of legal tools to protect victims’ privacy. Know What to Ask Because this area of law is new, protocols, practices, and the law itself are constantly morphing. Advocates should not attempt to advise victims on the law; instead, they should know which questions to ask and what resources are available for victims. For example: - What evidence is being sought? - Does the government or defense want it? - Is the request limited to electronic evidence that talks about the case or other evidence that might impact the case in some other extenuated way? Know what can be done Once you know what is being requested, the next issue is whether anything can be done to protect victims’ privacy. - Do victims have the right to refuse to turn over requested information? - What are the consequences of refusing to cooperate? - Will the case be dismissed if the information is not turned over? - Can the victim be held in contempt? - Does the victim have the right to be heard in court on the issue? - Are there available legal resources? For example, is there a pro bono attorney who can quash a subpoena for Facebook or cellphone records? Recognize that information is power, and keep victims fully informed at every step in the process. Explain that the process might be difficult, but you are there to support them. If you are involved in a case early enough, advise victims not to discuss the case on social media unless instructed to do so by police or prosecutors, because the conversation may become evidence in the case. By knowing what questions to ask and what resources exist to protect victims, advocates can help them make it through the court process and transition from victim to survivor. NATIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT CONFERENCE COMING UP 2014 event heads to Pittsburgh By National Sexual Violence Resource Center Staff (Illustration of the Pittsburgh skyline in black and grey) The Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (PCAR) and National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) are excited to host the National Sexual Assault Conference (NSAC) from Aug. 20-22 at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh. NSAC is a two-and-a-half day, advocacy-based conference that provides advanced training opportunities and information regarding sexual violence prevention and intervention. The theme for NSAC 2014 is “Many Voices, One Movement.” PCAR/NSVRC and the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault (CALCASA) are rotating hosts and ongoing sponsors of NSAC, alternating the location each year between the East Coast and West Coast. In 2012, the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault guest-hosted the conference in Chicago. Last year, CALCASA hosted the conference in Los Angeles, where it will return for 2015. Please join us in Pittsburgh for another successful conference! Details Registration is open through July 31. Visit nsvrc.org/nsac for more information. On Twitter, use #NSAC2014 to connect with others about the event. SELF-CARE Sabbatical provides relaxation, learning opportunities for staff By Peggy Brown 2013 Recipient of Rasmuson Sabbatical, Executive Director of Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (Pull quote: “By rejuvenating and taking a break, I returned with a greater sense of vision ... “) (There are five pictures included with this article: 1. Peggy Brown, with her back turned to the camera, holds a large bird in her left hand; she explored falconry while visiting Kenmare, Ireland. 2. A group of fishing vessels are docked and in the water, creating a picturesque scene in the village of Essaouira, Morocco. 3. Brown poses for a selfie on a beach in Morocco, a place she has always wanted to visit. "It seemed so exotic and different, and I wanted to experience the souk markets full of spices, cloth, and things to buy/sell/trade firsthand," she said. 4. Seven goats stand in a tree in Essaouira, Morocco. "The goats actually climb up these trees and eat the leaves. Reminded me of a Dr. Seuss story,” Brown said. 5. A painting by Brown depicts a coastal scene. She had a chance to catch up on her painting during her sabbatical.) How many times have those of us who work in the realm of domestic and sexual violence said, “I need some time off” or “I need a break”? Many leaders in the nonprofit sector endure unrelenting stress, which potentially leads to burnout. The enormous demands of our jobs, often combined with financial and staffing pressures, can prevent us from taking time off for much-needed rejuvenation. As leaders in our fields, we come to believe that the world will fall apart without us standing watch. In 2013, the Rasmuson Foundation provided me with a three-month sabbatical from my post as Executive Director with Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. When we, as leaders, take a sabbatical, the extended departure from the day-to-day stress and concerns of nonprofit management can produce benefits not only for us, but for our organizations and funders, as well. If you have been doing this work in a leadership role or are on a board of directors for a nonprofit that does this type of work, I encourage you to find ways to practice self-care, such as taking or offering opportunities for self-care at your agency. Since returning, I have been asked several questions: “How did it affect your organization?” “How did it affect you personally?” “What are three highlights from your experience?” I’d like to take this opportunity to share the answers to these questions. Important Lessons Here are the kernels of wisdom/truth I learned from my experience with the Rasmuson Sabbatical: - I want to work well, not hard. There is a balance to be found and maintained. - It is our connectedness to others that keeps us fulfilled, both personally and professionally. - Traveling for fun is therapeutic. It shakes me out of my routine. I need to plan and incorporate it as a part of my self-care. Preparations Before I departed, I was faced with several questions, such as: - What if we get sued? - What if someone quits? - What if our funding doesn’t come through? - What if the government shuts down? While preparing for my absence, staff members were initially anxious. We had numerous conversations over a seven-month period, and when it came time for my departure, it was uneventful. There were only well-wishes. Many said, “Don’t worry, we’ve got this.” I left one senior management person as Acting Executive Director, and two others took on roles as management support. The ensuing result was that they all learned new skills and took on new responsibilities. Upon my return, I cannot count how many people, staff, board, and stakeholders commented on what a good job my colleagues did while I was gone. Increase in capacity I was able to delegate more responsibilities and decision-making to staff. This allowed me to focus on cultivating staff. It became a natural tool for succession planning. At the least, it provided an opportunity to envision what any succession planning might look like. It gave staff an opportunity to hone new skills. The Acting Executive Director became that filter and leader. I asked, “How was this experience for you?” Her comment was, “Overall, it was great, but I know now that I am more of a project person, and would not be inclined to do a job like this one. … I’m glad I did it, if for no other reason [than] to see a different side of things.” Post-sabbatical, it has become my focus to ensure that our agency’s employees continue to grow in their careers. Strengthening governance Not only did I have to plan with my staff, but I also had to plan with my Board of Directors. My initial concerns were that the boundaries between coalition staff and board members might be blurred and I’d come home to a mess. This did not happen. Cultivating Relationships Once chosen as a recipient by Rasmuson Foundation, I not only had support to prepare my organization for my departure; I also participated in gatherings with other recipients, which created a strong, more involved relationship with the foundations’ leadership. Increased Well-Being By rejuvenating and taking a break, I returned with a greater sense of vision, a deeper approach to that vision and a renewed confidence in my ability to frame, message, and implement that vision. On Aug. 31, 2013, I flew to Barcelona, Spain, where I spent two months traveling around Europe. I had always dreamt of arriving at an airport and deciding where to go next. It took me more than a month not to think like a nonprofit and try to coordinate travel and lodging for efficiency and money savings. What a tremendous gift this was. I met new and interesting fellow travelers, and was able to talk with them about how Alaska had an amazing foundation that allowed for these kinds of sabbaticals. People were fascinated by this and by Alaska as a state. The word “rejuvenation” has new meaning for me. When I returned, numerous people commented that I looked younger and seemed relaxed. I felt both of those things but was surprised that others could see it. Now that I’m a sabbatical alumna, I have been asked to provide input on the development of some of the Rasmuson Foundation’s new grant programs. I look forward to encouraging others to learn firsthand the benefits of finally catching that break. Sabbatical Resources - The Rasmuson Sabbatical Program (www.rasmuson.org) was founded in 2004 for the personal growth or renewal of leaders in order to combat job-related stress and burnout. The sabbatical is available to executive directors and CEOs who work for health and human service organizations. - The Alston/Bannerman Fellowship Program (www.alstonbannerman.org) seeks to advance progressive social change by helping to sustain organizers of color by giving them time for reflection and renewal. - The Barr Foundation Fellows Program (www.barrfoundation.org) seeks to create a diverse leadership network that has an impact on the quality of life in Boston, rejuvenate outstanding executive directors, provide emergent leaders with development opportunities, and strengthen organizations in distributed leadership and succession planning. - The Durfee Sabbatical Program (www.durfee.org) seeks to replenish the stores of energy and inspiration for the community’s most gifted leaders. Six sabbaticals are provided annually. - The Piper Fellows program (www.pipertrust.org) aims to promote rejuvenation and professional development. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT 2013 brings enhanced provisions to landmark legislation By Terri Poore Policy Advocate, National Alliance to End Sexual Violence [There is a photo of Barack Obama at a desk surrounded by a large group of people. The caption reads: President Barack Obama — joined by Vice President Joe Biden (fourth from left), members of anti-violence organizations, law enforcement officials, tribal leaders, survivors of abuse, advocates, and members of Congress — signs the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act on March 7, 2013.] For the past 20 years, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has been the central organizing tool for the anti-violence against women movement. As with all legislative efforts, the policy changes in VAWA are incremental, and there is always room for improvement. But there can be no doubt that VAWA has galvanized advocates, policymakers, and the public to take a stand, and it has propelled forward the work to end sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. With each iteration of VAWA, advocates reach deeper into communities to find out how the law can help survivors heal and advocates do their life-saving work. VAWA first passed in 1994 under the leadership of then-Sen. Joe Biden. To this day, Vice President Biden considers VAWA one of his most important achievements. The original VAWA created The Rape Prevention & Education Program — the first dedicated funding for the prevention of sexual violence. VAWA passed at a time when a number of states had no sexual assault coalition or lacked statewide staff. Through the STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program, state sexual assault coalitions were able to hire staff to begin understanding and coordinating rape crisis work in their states. Over the years and from this foundation, states have built an incredible infrastructure of training, technical assistance, standards, and policy work. The State Coalition Grant Program was created in 2000 through the first reauthorization of VAWA, recognizing the critical work of state coalitions in organizing, supporting, and innovating the nation’s responses to sexual assault and domestic violence. VAWA 2005 included landmark programs and policies to improve the nation’s response to sexual assault. Through the leadership of the late Gail Burns-Smith, longtime president of National Alliance to End Sexual Violence; Diane Moyer, legal director of Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape; and Ilse Knecht, Deputy Director of Public Policy at the National Center for Victims of Crime, VAWA 2005 created the Sexual Assault Services Program (SASP), the first dedicated federal funding source for sexual assault services. VAWA 2005 also included funds that were set aside for sexual assault response in the Rural and Legal Assistance to Victims grant programs. This helped incentivize the development of responses to sexual assault in rural communities, and began to address the civil legal needs of sexual assault survivors. Additionally, VAWA 2005 required states to certify that they would neither require a survivor to take a polygraph examination as a condition of an investigation nor to cooperate with law enforcement as a condition of having a forensic examination. Preparations for VAWA 2013 started three years before its passage. Advocacy organizations, such as the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence, cast wide nets to find out the ways in which advocates and survivors wanted to see the law improved. Those suggestions were turned over to working groups who drafted and re-drafted, during long phone calls and in-person sessions. These drafts were turned over to point people who crafted language late into the night. And all that happened before advocacy with Congress began. If there’s anything the coalition of advocates who worked most closely on the passage of VAWA will remember about VAWA 2013, it is the way the coalition stayed together. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) advocacy groups wouldn’t move forward with language that protected them but left out Native American women. Immigrant advocacy groups stood up for their LGBT brothers and sisters. The process was as historic and inspirational as the outcome. As advocates, we had various priorities. For the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence, those priorities included the sexual assault set-asides in the STOP and Arrest grants and housing protections for survivors. Varying priorities meant we didn’t agree with each other all of the time, and we brought those disagreements to the table and had long, challenging conversations. However, publicly we stood solid behind legislation returning sovereignty to tribes to prosecute non-Native perpetrators of domestic violence and explicitly protecting LGBT and sexual assault survivors. We also ensured that the law was free from dangerous policies impacting immigrant survivors. A broad, grassroots effort was essential to passing VAWA 2013. Advocates and survivors across the country made phone calls, participated on Twitter, and posted pictures of what VAWA meant to them. A broad group of bipartisan senators and representatives worked closely with us along the way. Our successful advocacy effort to pass an inclusive VAWA in February 2013, in a time when Congress was gridlocked, has become legendary. On March 7, 2013, President Barack Obama signed a new, inclusive VAWA into law. As we work to implement the provisions of VAWA 2013, we also can begin to ask ourselves how survivors might better be served by the next VAWA. COMMUNITY VOICES What has been VAWA’s greatest accomplishment in the last 20 years? “VAWA’s most enduring gift has been to bring the issues of sexual and domestic violence and stalking to prominence on the public policy agenda. Because of VAWA, when we had natural disasters [such as] Hurricane Katrina, or economic ones [such as] the most recent recession, public policymakers at the highest levels worked to ensure that part of the response to those crises focused on what survivors needed. VAWA did that.” — Lisalyn R. Jacobs, Vice President of Government Relations, Legal Momentum “VAWA’s very name is a critical recognition of gender-based violence as a pervasive problem in this country. VAWA has also proven to be a strong organizing and advocacy tool that we have successfully used to articulate why ALL victims deserve protection and support and to lift up the power of community-based solutions.” — Anne Menard, CEO, National Resource Center on Domestic Violence “VAWA has many successes in its 20-year history of providing criminal justice coordination and response to violence against women. In my opinion, the greatest accomplishment for VAWA was the creation of SASP (Sexual Assault Services Program) which is the first federal funding for direct services for sexual assault survivors. I would be remiss not to add the meaningful inclusion of sexual assault that has been evident in the last reauthorization. Violence Against Women does include sexual violence.” — Monika Johnson Hostler, Executive Director, North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault “VAWA broke the silence when it was passed 20 years ago. Programs, systems and services were enhanced and funded. Victims of sexual assault and domestic abuse came out of the shadows, judges and law enforcement officials started learning how to deal with these crimes, and advocates felt unity as they raised their voices and demands for better programs, full funding, enforcement of the laws and accountability. Every five years, the law was reauthorized and improvements were added. More diverse populations were addressed, more programs and services were established, more people talked about this violence and tried to do more to prevent this family and community scourge. Lives were saved and VAWA had made a difference in millions of people’s lives. But despite our massive and successful campaigns to pass and reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, domestic and sexual violence still ravages our families, campuses, military troops, reservations, detention camps, prisons, workplaces, institutions and communities. Rape kits are still untested. Star athletes, ace pilots, priests, and other predators escape prosecution and punishment. Victims who report the crime of sexual violence still lose their jobs, their friends, their minds, and their souls. So as we celebrate VAWA’s two decades we must also make sure that we explode and expand our cocoon of solidarity and determination. We must include our sisters and brothers who live in poverty, who are disabled or in nursing homes and detention camps, who have been “disappeared” on reservations or in Juarez, or gunned down in their own homes or havens of escape. We must continue to demand and work for ‘justice’ that includes accountability, responsibility, liability and enforcement ...” — Pat Reuss, Policy Advisor, National Organization for Women “Having been a police officer pre- and post-VAWA, designated funding to combat violence against women has been critical. As an officer, it was extremely frustrating to take victims to a shelter to be turned away because there weren’t enough beds or because the program didn’t take kids. Services for victims were scarce. Opportunities for training for law enforcement were almost nonexistent. We can’t continue to blame officers for not responding appropriately to these crimes if they are not provided with appropriate training, resources, and support.” — Joanne Archambault, Executive Director, End Violence Against Women International “VAWA’s greatest accomplishment has been broadening during each reauthorization to better reach and serve marginalized populations. VAWA 2013 was especially exciting with the expansion of the Underserved Populations definition to include sexual orientation, gender identity and faith, the restoration of Tribal sovereignty in IPV [interpersonal violence] cases, and stronger supports for immigrant populations and communities of color.” — Tonya Lovelace, Senior Director, Women of Color Network HUMAN TRAFFICKING Snapshots from Love146’s Sweet Relief Benefit Bakeoff Story and photos by Mallory Gricoskie The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (There are six pictures included with this story: 1. A rolling pin actually is a trophy, which was awarded to the winner of the bake-off. 2. A tray of goodies shows intricately decorated cupcakes, cookies, tiramisu and more, all in the theme of Valentine’s Day. 3. A Valentine’s Day-themed treat sets on a red and white voting card. 4. The event was packed with people taste-testing sweet treats, bidding on a silent auction, and watching videos about Love146’s work. 5. The National Sexual Violence Resource Center and Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape set up a booth that provided information on human trafficking. The booth held fact sheets, brochures, postcards, pens, and more. 6. Images on the walls told personal stories that highlighted Love146’s work in the fight against human trafficking. This particular image shows a group of hands in black and white holding a pink pair of baby shoes.) Love146, an organization that works to end human trafficking and exploitation, hosted its third annual Sweet Relief Benefit Bakeoff in Lancaster, Pa., on Valentine’s Day. Ten Lancaster-area bakeries participated in the event. Bakers crafted delicacies that ranged in flavor from pink lemonade to mint fudge to vegan soft ginger. In addition to the desserts, the event included light snacks and wine. Each attendee voted for his or her favorite baked concoction while learning more about Love146. At the end of the night, Pies Galore & More was crowned the winner for its salted caramel cheesecake. Staff from the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center attended and provided resources on human trafficking Proceeds from the event directly supported Love146. Online For more information on Love146, visit www.love146.org. Follow @Love146 on Twitter and Instagram, like Love146 on Facebook, and view videos on their YouTube channel, Justice4Children. CAMPUS SAFETY Understanding VAWA, Jeanne Clery Act By Alison Kiss, Executive Director of the Clery Center for Security On Campus (There are two images included with this article. 1. A male student with a backpack over his shoulder smiles as he chats with a female student. 2. A male student with headphones in his ears sits on a green bench. A female student stands against a column and talks on her cellphone.) In March 2013, President Barack Obama signed the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which included amendments to the Jeanne Clery Act. These amendments, first introduced as a standalone bill called the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, or Campus SaVE, will update 22-year-old provisions in the federal Jeanne Clery Act (the 1992 Campus Sexual Assault Victims Bill of Rights) to cover a more inclusive range of intimate partner violence including stalking, dating violence, sexual violence or domestic violence in addition to sexual assault. It also will expand campus educational programming already offered under Clery Act programs to include primary prevention and bystander intervention, empowering students to respond safely when they encounter sexual violence on campus. The Jeanne Clery Act and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 help protect victims of campus crime and sexual assault. The expansion of the Clery Act to include dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking is something that my colleagues in state and local domestic violence and sexual assault agencies should understand and learn about to apply to their services offered for students and staff on college and university campuses. Often people think of the Clery Act as a vehicle to collect reported crime statistics. While this is one element of the law, it also requires institutions to provide policy statements specific to reports of sexual violence (and now domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking). The Campus SaVE Act targets this issue from the most crucial angles – prevention efforts, collaboration, motivating people to become involved in making sure that violence is not tolerated and that victims are supported, and, most importantly, protecting those who have been victimized. The statistics collected by the Clery Act should be interpreted by looking deeper into campus policies and procedures. If an institution reports higher numbers of sexual assault, it does not necessarily indicate that the campus is unsafe. In fact, higher numbers are often a result of a campus that has broken the silence and embraces a culture of reporting and offering services to survivors. Talking often about sexual violence provides students with knowledge about where to obtain help and makes them more inclined to reach out or report an assault. Time after time, victims of sexual assault drop out of school, leaving behind dreams and goals. It is time that every victim is respected and informed of the rights they have in order to better protect their well-being and the integrity of their future. Leadership in higher education must facilitate dialog and ensure a holistic strategy that reaches beyond campus boundaries. Crime is everyone’s issue. Every student, administrator, faculty member, and staff person on a college campus needs to be motivated to make changes in the climate of campus violence and in their university community. Elements of Title IX and Campus SaVE highlight the need for awareness of social climate and changing the culture of sexual violence. The connections must be made and strengthened to create a well-coordinated network in every campus community that partner with county and state victim service agencies. There must be a collaborative effort to step in as active bystanders, support survivors, highlight ways to heal, and assure raised awareness of crucial campus safety issues impacting students on every campus across our country. Campuses should look to their state coalitions for guidance in prevention strategy and developing a coordinated response. Campus communities should be an example of our best aspirations and intentions for a civil society. Great education is meaningless if we are not willing to do our best to protect the safety and well-being of students. A genuine, significant national commitment to transforming campus culture is required, and the Campus SaVE Act has the potential to enhance campus safety for generations to come. President Obama’s call to action In January, President Barack Obama began an unprecedented national effort to address the alarming rates of sexual assault on college campuses. Obama established the “White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault.” The National Sexual Violence Resource Center submitted recommendations for addressing sexual violence on campus. Read them at http://tinyurl.com/motbm5b. About the Clery Center Clery Center for Security On Campus Inc., a national nonprofit organization, was founded in 1987 by Jeanne Clery’s parents, Connie and Howard, after she was raped and murdered in her on-campus residence hall at college, by a fellow student whom she did not know. The Clery Center worked to secure passage of the Jeanne Clery Act, originally known as the Campus Security Act, in 1990 and continues to be the nation’s leading voice for the improvement of campus community safety. The Clery Center is a technical assistance adviser for the Office on Violence Against Women Campus Grants Program, and trains college and university administrators nationwide.\ Also in this issue Cellphone app provides an alternative way for college students to talk about consent: PAGE 34 Online Learn more about the Clery Center for Security On Campus at clerycenter.org. CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT National coalition unites to prevent abuse of children By Karen Baker Director, National Sexual Violence Resource Center (A photo taken from a seat at a large conference table shows many attendance sitting at tables arranged in a rectangle. Karen Baker, Director of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, presided as president over the annual meeting of the National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation.) The National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation met March 24-25 on the grounds of the National Children’s Advocacy Center (NCAC) in Huntsville, Ala. The meeting was followed by NCAC’s annual National Symposium on Child Abuse, where many coalition members also conducted workshops. The coalition consists of about 40 organizations and national leaders. It identifies strategies to advance the shared goals of the membership. Several speakers attending NCAC’s Symposium joined coalition members to highlight current initiatives being implemented across the country. The remainder of the annual meeting was devoted to discussing prevention messaging and policy-related opportunities. Online More information about the National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation is available at www.preventtogether.org. COMMUNITY MOBILIZATION Project Envision helps NYC prevent sexual violence By Saswati Sarkar Prevention Program Manager, New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault (Three images are included with this article. 1. A map of New York City shows the three communities served by Project Envision: South Bronx, Lower East Side, Manhattan, and Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 2. A Project Envision coalition member stands next to charts during an event that presented research findings from a Community Needs Assessment. 3. A group of three Project Envision coalition members gather during a community meeting.) In New York City, we envision a community that takes collective responsibility for ending sexual violence. Project Envision — a citywide effort to bring various segments of the community together to develop their own solutions to sexual violence — was an effort to begin doing just that. Background Designed as a six-year demonstration project (from 2007-13), Project Envision was conceptualized by the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault at a time when multiple coalition-based community mobilization was a new enterprise in New York’s sexual violence prevention landscape. The goal was to form a coalition of rape crisis programs and neighborhood communities in the three selected sites in NYC: Williamsburg, Brooklyn; Manhattan’s Lower East Side; and the South Bronx. More than 500 community members participated across the three pilot sites, providing the Envision coalitions with rare community-level data to identify relevant and attainable prevention objectives for each community. The Lower East Side community coalition identified sexual violence in intimate partner relationships as a prevention priority, the South Bronx focused on child sexual abuse, and Williamsburg opted to address sexual harassment on the streets. The collaboration allowed rape crisis programs and community stakeholders to pool their collective resources and collaborate on a long-term, community-centered pilot, rather than work in isolation from each other. Throughout the project, the alliance provided tools, technical assistance, and training to help the 10 participating rape crisis programs build a core of coalition leaders and ensure that the project was implemented according to best-practice standards in the fields of public health, social change, and organizational development. The six-year community mobilization project reached its final stage with the completion of a collaborative evaluation in 2013. The alliance conducted a Participatory Evaluation with each of the three community coalitions to evaluate the strengths and challenges of Project Envision as a community-level primary prevention model. Increased community awareness and investment in primary prevention, improved organizing and coalition-building skills, and strong community partnerships were identified as positive lessons from the project. After Envision The six-year Envision journey left coalition members with bittersweet memories. While some considered the experience a “learning curve,” others emphasized overcoming challenges, as well as the power of collective action and community mobilization. As coalition members recount, the collective journey enabled rape crisis programs to plan the future direction of their prevention work when the project reached it final phase. It also had brought them closer to their communities and enabled a deeper understanding of the community’s needs and prevention priorities. Drawing from Envision’s community mobilization experience and the commitment to developing community-specific prevention programming, the rape crisis programs went on to develop prevention strategies tailored to communities’ needs. For example, recognizing the benefit of engaging youth and campus communities in sexual violence prevention, the programs from the South Bronx and Williamsburg developed prevention programs that integrated rape prevention education with peer-led community mobilization efforts for school and campus-based population. In formulating prevention programming, rape crisis programs in the South Bronx implemented additional comprehensive strategies that addressed interrelated forms of abuse (e.g. bullying, child sexual abuse) identified by the community. For example, one of the South Bronx rape crisis programs strategically designed its prevention programming to complement prevention education for youth by incorporating a community mobilization project to engage parents in child sexual abuse prevention. Responding to increasing incidence of alcohol related sexual assault cases on college campuses in New York, rape crisis programs from the South Bronx and Williamsburg additionally initiated a coalition-based community mobilization initiative: the “Healthy Nightlife Project,” which engages patrons and stakeholders from the city’s nightlife community in sexual violence prevention. Project Envision continues The Lower East Side Community Coalition, in conjunction with community residents, collectively agreed to continue with Project Envision as a city-wide coalition. This past year, the coalition launched an exciting initiative, the “I Have The RIGHT ...” campaign to combat common rape stereotypes in New York City. The coalition has been active in bringing the issues of sexual assault and primary prevention to the community and engaging community members in conversations about sexual violence prevention. Looking ahead What can we, as communities, do to prevent sexual violence? As rape crisis programs, social justice advocates, community members, and survivors, how can we emerge as forces for change, challenge social norms that perpetuate sexual violence, and eliminate sexual violence from our lives? The history of social change movement, as we have known it, is intrinsically tied to a collective struggle for social justice. Communities across the globe often have resorted to mobilizing those most affected by the problem in formulating sustainable social solutions. Eliminating sexual violence from our communities demands similar passion and rigor for collective action. AWARDS, CELEBRATIONS AND MILESTONES Denim Day in LA & USA celebrates 15th anniversary By Patricia Giggans Executive Director, Peace Over Violence [Photo: People surround a table filled with promotional materials for Denim Day in LA & USA, which is observed worldwide and is spreading globally. One day each April (Sexual Assault Awareness Month), supporters wear jeans to protest rape and sexual violence. ] On April 23, millions of individuals, businesses, organizations and schools across the globe participated in the 15th Annual Denim Day in LA & USA. In 1992, in a small town outside of Naples, Italy, a young woman accused her 45-year-old driving instructor of brutally raping her during a driving lesson. She told police that he drove her to an isolated area, forced her out of the car, and raped her. He was convicted on lesser charges and later convicted on all charges by an appeals court in 1998. He was sentenced to 34 months in prison before the case made its way to the Italian high court. There, the sentence was overturned based on the justices’ belief that since the victim wore tight jeans that were not easily removed, she must have helped her rapist remove them. The justices declared that this was not an act of rape, but consensual sex. This decision outraged lawmakers and organizations not only in Italy, but worldwide. Female members of Italian Parliament protested on the steps of the Supreme Court by wearing jeans and immediately this image spread. In Sacramento, Calif., members of the California Senate and Assembly followed suit by wearing jeans on the steps of the Capitol. When I saw these images from Italy and California, I felt that we all should wear jeans to protest rape and sexual violence. I established the first Denim Day in LA in 1999. We were able to mobilize and engage individuals, politicians, organizations and businesses by encouraging everyone to wear jeans as a visible sign of protest against the misconceptions surrounding sexual violence. “Dollars for Denim” drives raised money for local rape crisis centers and, with each new year, the campaign spread even further. Today, what started as a citywide protest has become a national day of awareness that is spreading globally. Denim Day is held in April, during Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). Since its inception, millions of people have participated in Denim Day. The impact of social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook have not only expanded awareness about the campaign, but also have allowed participants as far away as Afghanistan and South Korea to show their support for survivors. Still, as large as the campaign grows, it is supremely evident that misconceptions about rape and sexual assault still exist. It is imperative that we continue to spread the message: there is no excuse and never an invitation to rape. ONLINE For more information or to get involved, visit the Denim Day in LA & USA website: www.denimdayusa.org. NSVRC blogger is ‘Inspired Advocate’ Jen Grove, below, Prevention Outreach Coordinator at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, was recently added to a list of ‘Inspired Advocates’ for her blog, “Perspectives of a Preventionista,” which is a regular feature on nsvrc.org. “Inspired Advocates” is a project of socialworklicensemap.com, a website devoted to the field of social work. According to the website, “Inspired Advocates is a dynamic resource designed to build community and awareness around websites documenting social justice efforts.” To read “Perspectives of a Preventionista,” visit http://nsvrc.org/blogs/preventionista. Check out other “Inspired Advocate” blogs at http://socialworklicensemap.com/inspired-advocates/. Tell Us What You Think We’d like to highlight your favorite prevention-inspired blogs in an upcoming edition of The Resource. Please email the name of your favorite blog and why you think it’s great to resources@nsvrc.org. COALITION SPOTLIGHT In Pennsylvania On campus: Helping schools strengthen prevention efforts By Liz Zadnik Former Education and Resource Coordinator, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (Photo: A group of five college students sits on a lawn with their laptops, cellphones, and backpacks. The Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape’s Assessing Campus Readiness for Prevention curriculum helps sexual assault preventionists leverage their expertise to support college communities’ sexual violence prevention work.) In 2011, the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (PCAR) was given funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development to improve a prevention strategy aimed at campus communities. With assistance from an independent consultant, Sharon Wasco, Ph.D., PCAR engaged three sexual assault centers with unique campus partnerships, perspectives, and approaches to prevention to update and field-test a practical approach to preventing sexual violence on campuses. Discussions around prevention and effective community engagement supported the development of a new approach — assessing community readiness — rather than revamping a prescriptive curriculum or campaign. The idea was to produce a research-based and practice-informed process that could complement existing strategies on diverse campus communities across the state. Informed by existing models of community readiness, pilot sites worked throughout the 2011-12 academic year to develop, field test, and adapt an assessment tool, ensuring that it would be practical and accessible to other centers in Pennsylvania. Community readiness is a concept that has been used in other social movements and change efforts as a way to understand communities’ unique strengths and challenges while engaging influential community members to bring about a long-lasting and impactful solution (Edwards et al., 2000; Plested, Edwards, & Jumper-Thurman, 2006). For the campus readiness assessment, interviews are conducted with a variety of carefully selected campus stakeholders (e.g., students, faculty, staff, and administrators) and the results are used to determine an overall readiness score that places the campus community along a nine-point continuum ranging from “no awareness of sexual violence as a problem on campus” to “full campus ownership.” The initial score can be used to set realistic goals that focus initial efforts on appropriate readiness-building activities or building an infrastructure for implementing and evaluating primary prevention strategies. Additional benefits of the readiness assessment approach include facilitating new connections on campus and strengthening the evaluation competencies of those engaged in the qualitative data collection and analysis procedures. The readiness assessment provides a flexible and practical tool that helps preventionist identify and involve leaders on campus, engage in meaningful conversations about sexual violence, and collect information that can be used to develop effective and long-lasting prevention strategies. In 2012, PCAR received support from Penn State University to continue its pilot project to further evaluate the assessment approach and develop new tools to support implementation. Both pilot projects produced a tremendous amount of practice-informed evidence and guidance for other centers and preventionists. Readiness assessments and this approach to prevention have caught on in other communities, as well. Centers in Pennsylvania have begun to use this approach with schools, faith communities, and as a way to jump-start collaborative projects. PCAR is excited to see where this will take prevention and evaluation capacity as a state and coalition. Online Interested in conducting a readiness assessment in your community or on a local campus? Visit PCAR’s website to download guidance, resources, and tools: http://tinyurl.com/Campus-Readiness. References Edwards, R. W., Jumper-Thurman, P., Plested, B. A., Oetting, E. R., & Swanson, L. (2000). Community readiness: Research to practice. Journal of Community Psychology, 28, 291-307. Retrieved from Colorado State University, Tri-Ethnic Center: http://triethniccenter.colostate.edu/docs/Article2.pdf Plested, B. A., Edwards, R. W., & Jumper-Thurman, P. (2006). Community readiness theory: A handbook for successful change. Available from Colorado State University, Tri-Ethnic Center:http://www.triethniccenter.colostate.edu/CRhandbookcopy.htm COALITION SPOTLIGHT By Liz Cascone Advocacy Manager, Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance (There are two photos included with this article. 1. Two Virginia license plates are stacked on top of one another. One is blue with a red heart and says “Love, Respect & Equality.” The other is blue and green and says, “Peace begins at home.” 2. Virginia’s Attorney General Mark Herring, center, and staff from the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance hold “Peace Begins at Home” license plates outside of the Department of Motor Vehicles in Richmond, Va.) As a child, I was lucky enough to experience a handful of road trips with my family. Although I didn’t appreciate it then, my father was an avid boater and, by default, his children were his first mates. We spent many hours on the road traveling from our home in Northern Virginia and the beautiful tranquil shores of the Chesapeake Bay. On our travels, one of the ways I’d manage my tween boredom was to search for new and intriguing personalized license plates on the cars passing by. I would try to decipher them and grapple with the meaning behind the message, mostly leading to further confusion. I didn’t know at the time that Virginia is home to the most personalized plates in the country and has a selection of more than 200 special interest license plates, representing a variety of special interest organizations. As a child, my favorite was the blue crab plate that reads, “Friend of the Chesapeake,” a plate that supports environmental education and restoration projects for the bay. As an adult, all of those childhood memories come flooding back to me whenever I see a blue crab license plate speed by. As an advocate in the field of sexual and domestic violence, securing sustainable funding for primary prevention is an ongoing challenge. The majority of local sexual and domestic violence advocacy agencies have, at most, one prevention staff member. This holds true for many state coalitions, as well. There are limited opportunities to develop, enhance, and expand prevention programming, and often those are short-lived. That’s no way to develop healthy communities and equalize sexual and domestic violence prevention programming and intervention services. In 2010, the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance (Action Alliance) began to think outside of the box when it came to sustaining prevention programming across the Commonwealth. If Virginia had already put the vain in vanity plates, we decided that we could benefit from the state’s already inflated ego and get noticed, too. The Action Alliance, with our member sexual and domestic violence advocacy agencies, established the Building Healthy Futures Fund to support statewide and local efforts to prevent sexual and domestic violence. The fund will offer an opportunity to establish public and private partnerships focused on raising private dollars. To establish the Building Healthy Futures Fund, the Action Alliance worked with Another Limited Rebellion, a Richmond, Va.-based socially conscious design firm. Another Limited Rebellion assisted in the development of a new special interest license plate, the first initiative of the fund, giving the Commonwealth a concrete opportunity to spread the message that sexual and domestic violence are preventable. Establishing a special license plate can be a complicated and lengthy endeavor. Here’s how the process works in Virginia: In order to enable the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles to begin printing a new special-interest license plate, legislation approving the plate must be passed by Virginia’s General Assembly. Before passing the legislation, a minimum of 450 prepaid plates must be collected and presented to the General Assembly. Following legislative approval, it takes another year to submit the pre-paid applications, gain artwork approval, and begin fabricating the plates. The payoff could be big; $15 from the sale of each plate goes into the fund to be distributed on an annual basis to each sexual and domestic violence advocacy agency taking part in the fund. Agencies were given the opportunity to “opt in” to the fund by pre-selling license plates; for every license plates sold, they received one share in the fund (there was a four-share maximum). This provided enough motivation and incentive to establish a large workforce to achieve this goal. Still, we had our work cut out for us. This is how we made it happen: Two draft license plate designs were created and presented to the Action Alliance membership. Members voted on the design they liked the most. An advisory committee was established to create the guidelines for how the license plate initiative would be administered. A marketing strategy was developed to focus on getting individuals to purchase a prepaid license plate, and the Action Alliance and member agencies engaged in selling the minimum 450 prepaid license plates. A couple of our member agencies gained incredible ground selling plates in their communities. Judy Casteele, Executive Director of Project Horizon in Lexington, Va., said, “I think the key to our success was we weren’t just selling license plates. We were asking our community to support our violence prevention efforts in a visible way. When we talked about the work we were already doing and how we wanted the community to be a part of our peacemaking efforts, it was hard to say no.” Cartie Lominack, Executive Director at the Shelter for Help in Emergency in Charlottesville, Va., discovered that face-to-face interactions with family, friends, and allied professionals worked best. “With a visual of the license plate to show, these direct asks gave us the opportunity to help people understand why this would have a positive effect on the work that we do and enhance prevention efforts,” Lominack said. “It gave community members a tangible way to become involved and support our work.” Let me be perfectly honest: This project was challenging. It took us twice as long as we had planned, and collecting 450 pre-paid license plate applications became a daunting task. We pushed forward and continued marketing this initiative and secured a strong sponsor for the legislation, Senator Mark Herring — now Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring. In January of 2013, we presented Virginia’s General Assembly with 450 pre-paid license plate applications making this lofty idea a reality. In April, Virginia’s newest special interest license plate debuted, establishing the first funding stream in the Commonwealth dedicated to the primary prevention of sexual and intimate partner violence. Now Virginians can literally drive peace home. Details Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance created the “Peace Begins at Home” license plate project as an innovative way to raise funds and raise awareness. The Building Healthy Futures Fund will receive $15 from the sale of each plate. The fund was established to support statewide and local efforts in preventing sexual and domestic violence. To learn more, visit www.vsdvalliance.org. Want to spotlight your coalition? Tell us about the great prevention work being done in your state, and it could become an article in an upcoming edition. Email us at resources@nsvrc.org. TECH ROUNDUP SexPositive app aims to help build cultures of consent on campus (An illustration shows a cellphones with the Sex Positive app loaded in its screen.) By Keith Van Norman Health Promotion Marketing Manager, the University of Oregon health Center Much of the public debate about sexual assaults on campuses across the U.S. has (rightfully) focused on creating/strengthening university policies about assault investigations and prosecutions. In addition to these important policy overhauls, universities have a responsibility to step up efforts to prevent assaults. When we launched the University of Oregon (UO) SexPositive app in October, we felt it was vital to provide students information not only about sexually transmitted infections and safer sex practices, but also to highlight effective communication and partner consent. Beneath our innovative and engaging user interface, we’ve included a section of ways for users to increase communication about sex. It’s not enough to tell people not to rape. We made an effort to model what we expect users to do. First, we want folks to examine their motivations for having sex and consider whether they’re ready for sex. Second, for users who are ready for sex, we want them to understand that a “yes” to one sexual act is not a “yes” to every sexual act. Third, we want users to consider a variety of personal boundaries before finding themselves in a high-pressure situation. Finally, we want to model the many ways to express and obtain explicit consent. Members of the UO Counseling and Testing Center (UCTC) wrote and starred in a YouTube video in which they ask basic questions about a viewer’s readiness for sex. UCTC staff provide contact information for those who want to talk things over with a professional. Scarleteen.com gave us permission to share their “yes/no/maybe so” survey and help people think about boundaries that range from holding hands to anal sex. We partnered with the UO Sexual Wellness Advocacy Team (a student troupe that utilizes theater and facilitation to educate peers about sexual assault, dating violence, and sex-positivity) to write and star in YouTube videos that model how to start difficult conversations, and offer a list of sexy suggestions for obtaining explicit consent (without ruining the mood or sounding like a lawyer). Students come to campus with a range of beliefs and experiences. By modeling how we expect students to communicate, we will join other programs and organizations at UO whose goals are to create a culture of consent on campus. Details SexPositive is a free app for iPhone and Android that has been downloaded more than 10,000 times. For more information, visit sexpositive.uoregon.edu. Share your news Are you working on innovative ways to talk about sexual violence and prevention? Tell us about what you’re working on. Email us at resources@nsvrc.org. Interactive learning series focuses on sexual violence in disasters By Annie Gebhardt Training Specialist, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (A photo illustration shows a red and white road sign with the words “Prepare before disaster strikes” written on it.) In the chaotic aftermath of disasters, sexual violence can increase, leading to tragedy within a tragedy. Appropriate pre-disaster planning among advocates, preventionists, emergency responders, disaster managers, and other community partners can help prevent sexual violence and ensure that supportive services are available during and after a disaster. To support local and state sexual violence preventionists, advocates, and allied professionals in learning from the past and preparing for future disasters that could affect their communities, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) has launched an interactive online series on sexual violence in disasters. This three-part series is based on the guide Sexual Violence in Disasters: A Planning Guide for Prevention and Response, created by the Louisiana Foundation Against Sexual Assault and NSVRC. Module 1, Understanding the Scope of the Problem, introduces the connections among sexual violence, disasters, and oppression. Two new modules, released in December, focus on practical recommendations for creating pre-disaster plans for sexual violence prevention and response. Both modules guide learners through key considerations in creating pre-disaster plans that are tailored to their own organizations and communities. Module 2, Building Community Partnerships for Pre-Disaster Planning, highlights guiding strategies and key community partners in the pre-disaster planning process. It includes a case study of an active, multidisciplinary task force in Southeast Texas that can serve as a valuable model for other communities. Module 3, Developing a Plan for Sexual Violence Prevention & Response, highlights four core components of a pre-disaster plan to help organizations recover quickly and continue to provide vital services in a disaster. The consequences of sexual violence in disasters are severe, far-reaching, and long-lasting. They also are preventable. Through pre-disaster planning, we can reduce the likelihood of sexual violence and continue to promote safety, healing, and justice in the event of disaster. Online To access resources on preventing sexual violence in disasters, visit http://tinyurl.com/NSVRC-disasters SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH What a journey: Reflecting on 3 years of healthy sexuality By Laura Palumbo Prevention Campaign Specialist, National Sexual Violence Resource Center This April’s Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) campaign proclaimed, “It’s time to talk about supporting young people.” SAAM 2014’s focus on healthy sexuality and young people launched the third installment of National Sexual Violence Center’s (NSVRC) resources on healthy sexuality. After three years, it’s time to discuss lessons learned from the campaigns. It all started with anonymous feedback and grew into the journey of an organization and movement toward boldly discussing healthy sexuality as sexual violence prevention. Each year, we close out our SAAM campaign with a request for feedback and ideas for future campaigns. I was two months into a new position and leading my first SAAM workgroup meeting at NSVRC, as we reviewed our feedback survey for insight on the theme of our upcoming campaign. We had a list of themes for participants to rank, but open-ended comments pointed us in a different direction: Consent. Sex positive. Healthy sexuality. Leave Your Comfort Zone The idea of a “healthy sexuality as sexual violence prevention” theme excited our team. Healthy sexuality as a topic had been explored by pioneers and partners in anti-sexual violence prevention movement, but for the most part this was unchartered territory for NSVRC and many others in the movement. Talking about sex has serious barriers. Sex isn’t exactly a cultural comfort zone, and it could get political. From a historical perspective, great efforts had been made to separate sexual assault from sex to emphasize the roles of power and oppression. On top of that, the anti-sexual violence movement had spent a great deal of time and energy to earn public interest and create spaces in communities and classrooms. It was reasonable to suggest that talking about healthy sexuality was taking a risk. Be Ready to Learn Still with the encouragement of those who came before us, we tiptoed forward on a journey to explore healthy sexuality. Our team did not have all the answers, but we were willing to learn. We would need a lot of help to get us ready. Enter partners in the sexual health movement, such as Alison Bellavance, who has a passion for bridging these two worlds. Alison’s training in human sexuality and experience in violence prevention supported our organization while we learned along the way. Unchartered waters quickly became more navigable as staff trainings on human sexuality and internal dialogues helped craft a vision and message for our SAAM work. Our first healthy sexuality campaign, SAAM 2012, was in development. It was exciting and challenging, and our team was eager to spread the word. Throughout the campaign development journey, we discovered incredible resources from a variety of fields that added to a comprehensive definition of healthy sexuality. The more we discovered, the more boundless our conversation about healthy sexuality became. A definition opened up into a framework, and it was clear that the characteristics and concepts core to healthy sexuality encompassed so much more than sex. Embrace Challenges One challenge was adequately addressing the breadth of healthy sexuality. On the other hand, we also had to deal with inherent barriers and the politics of talking about sex. We heard from participants in the movement who were excited to approach this framework in their prevention work, but didn’t know where to begin. Some were concerned about the challenge of talking about sex within their organizations and communities, and others felt as though they had not received sufficient education in sexuality and development in order to effectively share information and answer questions. Love the Journey It became clear that talking about healthy sexuality and integrating this concept in prevention work was a long-term vision. From the perspective of building capacity, it was important to start with a foundation that many of us had never formally received in sex education. It also was important to build the comfort level of individuals and advocates around talking about sex and marketing messaging about healthy sexuality within their organizations and communities. It seemed the more opportunities we had to share about our healthy sexuality work, the more we heard requests for resources and support. The conversation kept going after April, and it was clear that our SAAM 2012 campaign was just the start of our journey. As this campaign wrapped up, we began working on our healthy childhood sexual development campaign for SAAM 2013. As we approached the topic of stages and development of children, we discovered a need from the field for resources for teens, as well. Enter SAAM 2014, the third year of our healthy sexuality trilogy. By this time, our understanding of healthy sexuality had strengthened and grown, however, planning this campaign brought along its own unique challenge: connecting and communicating with teens. Closing out our third year of sharing about healthy sexuality, it feels as though we’ve just warmed up. This year’s campaign explored what it looks like to create a healthy foundation for young people to be sexually healthy beings. These lessons focused on understanding development, sharing age-appropriate, accurate information, and being a supportive resource and ally. Although April has passed, once the conversation has opened up, it’s really just the beginning of an ongoing opportunity for all of us, young and old, to talk about it. 3 years, 3 topics In 2012 Theme: Healthy sexuality & sexual violence prevention | Slogan: “It’s time ... to talk about it! Connect. Respect. Prevent sexual violence.” In 2013 Theme: Healthy childhood sexual development | Slogan: “It’s time ... to talk about it! Talk early, talk often. Prevent sexual violence. In 2014 Theme: Healthy sexuality & young people | Slogan: “It’s time ... to talk about it! Your voice. Our future. Prevent sexual violence.” Online Access resources and keep up with Sexual Assault Awareness Month happenings at nsvrc.org/saam. FROM THE LIBRARY The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2010 Summary By Thomas Frieden, Daniel Sosin, and Howard Spivak The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in February released a report, The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS): 2010 Summary, which expands upon data from the original NISVS summary report released in 2012. Key findings include: • Sexual violence is common among intimate partners. Nearly one in 10 women in the U.S. (9.4%) has been raped by an intimate partner in her lifetime, including completed forced penetration, attempted forced penetration, or alcohol/drug-facilitated completed penetration. One in 45 men in the U.S. has been made to penetrate an intimate partner. • Approximately one in six women and one in 12 men in the U.S. have experienced sexual violence other than rape by an intimate partner during their lifetime. • The lifetime prevalence of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner is higher for both women of color and men of color than for white non-Hispanics. • Approximately 14.8% of women and 9.8% of men (18 to 24 years old) experienced rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner. • Help (such as medical care, housing services, victim’s advocate services, community services, and legal services) is needed: 44.9% of female victims and 65.7% of males who said they needed services reported that they never received the services they needed. The full report further breaks down these and other findings, and includes helpful charts and figures for analysis. — Written by NSVRC staff Online To download the report’s findings, visit http://tinyurl.com/NISVS-IPV-summary. New Directions for Evaluation: Data Visualization, Part 1 and Part 2 Published by Wiley Periodicals Inc. and the American Evaluation Association Evaluation is a key part of program implementation, and a way for program staff to capture how a program is working and if the program is meeting the desired goals. Oftentimes, once the data is collected and analyzed, program staff struggle with how to communicate the results. This two-part series provides a glimpse of various forms of data visualization for both qualitative and quantitative data, and offers best-practice recommendations for presenting the data. Data visualization refers to the process of using tools to visually communicate information and ideas to various audiences. From tree maps and graphic recordings to data dashboards and geographic information systems, this series offers the reader information and visual examples of data visualization tools (including the strengths and limitations of each) for using current technology to communicate key data and information to program stakeholders and funders. — Written by Jennifer Grove, The National Sexual Violence Resource Center The T.O.P. Workbook for Sexual Health By Joann Schladale Not many people have had the opportunity to sit down and think about their sexuality and how it’s connected to other factors in their lives. The T.O.P. (Trauma Outcome Process) Workbook for Sexual Health is a tool designed for just that. This self-reflection workbook is designed to help young people make decisions about their sexual health and well-being by exploring their trauma histories and life experiences and connecting them to their current behaviors and decisions. Each self-reflection piece in the workbook begins with a short and easy to understand explanation of a concept — courage, respect, power, community, to name a few — followed by questions to guide the reader in considering their own understanding of the concept. The workbook starts with general, light topics like dreams and connection with others and slowly builds to discussing more difficult issues like sexual arousal and abuse histories. After working through some heavy concepts, readers are then guided back to a more positive place with discussions about self-care and integrity. While this workbook is designed for young people, individuals of any age could benefit from the self-reflection space it provides. I would recommend this book to parents, teachers, counselors, and anyone who would like to explore their sexuality and trauma histories in a healthy, positive way. — Written by Erica Rich, The National Sexual Violence Resource Center NSVRC National Sexual Violence Resource Center 123 North Enola Drive Enola, PA 17025 Toll Free: (877) 739-3895 Email: resources@nsvrc.org The NSVRC is on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest Two ads on back cover 1. NEW INFOGRAPHIC: Link Between Housing & Sexual Violence Victims of physical or sexual violence: 58% of homeless LGBT youth; 32% of homeless women; 27% of homeless men; 24% of homeless youth witness sexual assaults. Commercial sexual exploitation victims: 70% are youth-aged victims living on the streets; 30% are youth-aged victims living in shelters. READ MORE: nsvrc.org/publications 2. Save the date August 20-22, 2014 National Sexual Assault Conference Aparta la fecha 20-22 de Agosto de 2014 Conferencia Nacional Sobre la Agresion Sexual Pittsburgh, PA Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape: www.pcar.org California Coalition Against Sexual Assault: www.calcasa.org National Sexual Violence Resource Center: www.nsvrc.org © 2014 National Sexual Violence Resource Center. All rights reserved.