JUNEAU, Alaska – The Alaska Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (CDVSA) awarded a total of $18.2 million in community grant awards at its 4^th Quarter Meeting Tuesday, with $16.4 million going to Community-Based Victims’ Services Grants. The Victims’ Services Grant program provides critical and immediate emergency services, support, and referrals to individuals and families impacted by domestic and sexual violence, child abuse, and other violent crimes. The remainder of the funds will support sexual assault and domestic violence prevention efforts, as well as batterers intervention programs statewide.

“Community-Based Victim Services play a critical role in ensuring that Alaskans across the state have access to the care and support they need in the aftermath of trauma,” CDVSA Executive Director L. Diane Casto said after the meeting. “These grantees will assist victims in receiving the services they need, support survivors of domestic and sexual violence as they move forward, and increase community capacity to hold offenders accountable for their crimes. I am excited to see the good work that will be done through these community programs.”

The funding awarded represents a nearly 21% increase over last year, and includes several first-time grant recipients. FY19 grant awards will go to (asterisks indicate first-time grant recipients):

• Alaska Family Services (AFS)
• Advocates for Victims of Violence (AVV)
• Abused Women’s Aid in Crisis (AWAIC)
• Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies (AWARE)
• Arctic Women in Crisis (AWIC)
• Bering Sea Women’s Group (BSWG)
• Cordova Family Resource Center (CFRC)
• Emmonak Women’s Shelter (EWS)*
• Helping Ourselves Prevent Emergencies (HOPE)*
• Interior Alaska Center for Non-Violent Living (IAC)
• Ketchikan Indian Community (KIC)
• Kenaitze Indian Tribe (KIT)*
• Kodiak Women’s Resource & Crisis Center (KWRCC)
• The Lee Shore Center (LSC)
• Maniilaq Family Crisis Center (MFCC)
• Safe and Fear-Free Environment (SAFE)
• Sitkans Against Family Violence (SAFV)
• Seaview Community Services (SCS)
• South Peninsula Haven House (SPHH)
• Stand Together Against Rape (STAR)
• Tundra Women’s Coalition (TWC)
• Unalaskans Against Sexual Assault & Family Violence (USAFV)
• Victims for Justice (VFJ)
• Working Against Violence for Everyone (WAVE)*
• Women in Safe Homes (WISH)

“On behalf of the Council, I’d like to thank all of the grant applicants, and congratulate the recipients who received funding today,” Council Chair Rachel Gernat said. “The people of Alaska will be well-served by this year’s grantees, and the services they will provide to victims and communities statewide.”[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adversal-468×60″]

In addition to the approval of grant awards, the Council agreed to FY19 funding for the UAA Center for Human Development’s DART Program. Disability Abuse Response Teams (DART) are working to improve outcomes for victims of crime with increased vulnerability and a lack of services due to their disability.  An award of $138,034 was approved for the coming year to support underserved victims of violent crimes.

The Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault’s mission is to provide safety for Alaskans victimized or impacted by domestic violence and sexual assault. The Council is responsible for making sure Alaska has a system of statewide crisis intervention services, perpetrator accountability programs, and prevention services.

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