Promising Practices and Demonstration Projects

To meet OVC's mission of enhancing the Nation's capacity to assist victims, OVC funds the development of national training, technical assistance, and demonstration programs that promote best practices in meeting victims' needs. One area in which these efforts are focused is in meeting the needs of underserved victim populations, including victims with disabilities, victims in Indian Country, and victims in rural areas. Another assistance effort—helping victims of telemarketing fraud—includes an international component. Finally, OVC continues to promote overall strategies that are critical to the growth of victim services, such as the use of technology in creating a coordinated response to victims, and the availability of specialized services such as those for sexual assault victims.

See the box at the right for detailed information about OVC's initiatives in this area.

Conclusion

Identifying promising practices in victims' rights and services is an important priority. As a result, OVC is committed to evaluating victim assistance efforts to determine the appropriateness of replicating these practices in other jurisdictions and disciplines, and it continues to address the needs of underserved victim populations by identifying and cultivating new programs that serve them. OVC continues to fund promising practices and demonstration projects that meet the needs of victims of child sexual abuse, homicide, elder abuse, gang violence, drunk driving, and terrorism. In addition, OVC has supported several cutting-edge initiatives intended to improve victim access to services, educate victims and allied professionals about victims' rights, and enhance the quality of services.

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