SMART FY 18 Fellowship: Strengthening Sexual Violence Victim Service Program | SMART 2018 5204

Opportunity Information: Apply for SMART 2018 5204

The SMART FY 18 Fellowship: Strengthening Sexual Violence Victim Service Program is a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) funding opportunity administered by the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking (SMART). SMARTs broader mission is to help states, territories, and other jurisdictions implement and improve the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) and to support criminal justice professionals involved in managing sex offenders in ways that promote public safety. Funding for this fellowship is authorized under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act (34 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.), and it is offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement.

At its core, this solicitation funds a single fellowship position designed to strengthen how SORNA jurisdictions handle victim-centered work within their registration and notification systems. The fellowship is built around the idea that while many jurisdictions have invested heavily for years in building registries and community notification processes, they have often done less to help victims, families, and communities understand how to use offender information safely and effectively, or to connect registration and notification practices with strong victim services. In this program, "sexual violence and exploitation" is intentionally defined broadly to reflect the realities victim service providers and law enforcement encounter. It includes sexual assault, child sexual abuse, sex trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, and internet-facilitated sexual offenses.

The fellowship aims to build capacity and spread best practices across jurisdictions by identifying what is already working, documenting it clearly, and helping SMART share those approaches nationally. A significant emphasis is on improving responses to victims of sexual violence and exploitation, strengthening prevention and education strategies, and ensuring victim perspectives are incorporated into sex offender registration and notification policies, practices, and related research. Another key feature is that the fellow will also support SMARTs work with jurisdictions that have not yet substantially implemented SORNA, helping them advance their programs, meet remaining SORNA requirements, and improve information-sharing in ways that better inform and protect victims.

The fellow is expected to work closely with SMART staff on a range of practical activities. These include identifying and assessing effective victim services programs and policies; producing reports, presentations, and other materials that raise awareness about sexual victimization and highlight the importance of victim-centered approaches; and developing recommendations to improve jurisdictional responses through program development, education, and adoption of best practices. The role also includes reviewing and evaluating education curricula used to train current and future law enforcement professionals on sexual violence prevention, sex offending, and victim service delivery strategies, then making recommendations on promising training models. A major assignment is to inventory and analyze notification policies around the country, especially approaches that go beyond simply listing registry information and instead help victims and communities understand protective strategies and safety planning, and then to summarize and highlight the most promising models for SMART to disseminate.

The fellowship also includes engagement and field-facing work. The fellow may participate in professional development and training with SMART, attend internal and external stakeholder meetings and conferences, and at SMARTs request conduct site visits to help assess or support initiatives implementing promising prevention practices and victim services. Travel is explicitly anticipated as part of executing these responsibilities. Throughout, the fellow is expected to help SMART understand what jurisdictions need related to SORNA implementation and to propose solutions that integrate effective victim service responses with registration and notification work.

The deliverables are structured to ensure the work results in concrete products SMART can use. Required outputs include a drafted and presented assessment of victim services programming connected to sex offender registration and notification and related law enforcement activities; a drafted and presented assessment of law enforcement education curricula on preventing sexual violence and sex offending and improving victim service delivery; and a drafted and presented summary of notification policies that highlights the most promising approaches. The fellow will also produce supporting materials such as reports, articles, presentations, and talking points as needed, provide strategic recommendations on how SMART can broaden and deepen its victim services and prevention efforts, submit regular monthly or quarterly activity and recommendation reports to SMART leadership, and complete a final report summarizing accomplishments, challenges, and recommendations for improving the fellowship itself.

From an eligibility and funding standpoint, this opportunity is notable because it is aimed at individuals (not organizations) and funds only one award. The award ceiling is $150,000, with an expected number of awards of one. The CFDA listing is 16.203. The opportunity was posted January 29, 2018, with an original closing date of April 2, 2018.

• The Department of Justice, Department of Justice in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "SMART FY 18 Fellowship: Strengthening Sexual Violence Victim Service Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.203.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 29, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 02, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $150,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Individuals.

Apply for SMART 2018 5204

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