Cherokee Nation ONE FIRE Expansion of Services

OVC’s mission is to enhance the nation’s capacity to assist crime victims and provide leadership in changing policies and practices to promote justice and healing for all victims of crime. OVC achieves this mission, in part, by administering award programs supported by the federal Crime Victims Fund (CVF) to develop innovative training and technical assistance, and to provide direct services to improve the overall quality of victim assistance.

The overall goal of the Fiscal Year 2019 Tribal Victim Services Set-Aside Program is to provide support to tribal communities to improve services for victims of crime. Under the solicitation, OVC solicited applications for funding to support a comprehensive range of activities including needs assessment, strategic planning, program development and implementation, program expansion, and other activities needed to address the needs of a wide variety of crime victims in tribal communities.

With an award under Purpose Area 2: Coordination and Expansion of Existing Victim Service Program, the program will coordinate and expand services provided by existing Cherokee Nation victim service programs so that those services are more victim-centered, culturally competent, and comprehensive. Funding will support salary, benefits, travel, training, and supplies for a 1.0 FTE Office Manager and a 1.0 FTE Community Outreach Coordinator; a contract for a mental health provider that will provide counseling services to crime victims on site; emergency toiletries for youth victims housed at the youth shelter; and a GSA vehicle (and related costs like fuel) for the outreach coordinator.

(CA/NCF)