Public Awareness

National Crime Victims' Rights Week

In April 2018, OVC sponsored the annual commemoration of National Crime Victims' Rights Week (NCVRW). The theme, Expand the Circle: Reach All Victims, emphasized the importance of inclusion in victim services. The 2018 NCVRW Resource Guide—a suite of user-friendly sample materials and other resources, current statistics, professional artwork, and a tutorial to help communities implement public awareness campaigns for victims' rights—received more than 148,000 page views. Additionally, dozens of communities received Community Awareness Project grants of up to $5,000 each to conduct public education and awareness activities on crime victims' rights and services in their jurisdictions during NCVRW.

The week culminated with the National Crime Victims' Service Awards Ceremony, which included an address by the U.S. Attorney General. Coverage of the ceremony was aired throughout the country, including by awardee hometown outlets in Arizona, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. For the first time, OVC used Facebook Live to broadcast a livestream of the ceremony, which was viewed by more than 5,300 people.

Social Media Presence

In FY 2017, OVC's Facebook page, accessed by victims and victim service providers alike, achieved more than 10,000 followers—the most of any OJP office. Additionally, Facebook advertisements for OVC's National Crime Victims' Service Awards nomination campaign reached upwards of 92,000 accounts.

In FY 2018, OVC continued to provide timely and relevant information about victim services through its website and social media presence. In the months preceding the April NCVRW commemoration, there were 28,000 visits to OVC's NCVRW webpage. Additionally, the 2018 NCVRW Facebook advertising campaign reached more than 53,000 individuals.

Public Recognition

In FY 2018, OVC's 2017 NCVRW Resource Guide received the Award of Distinction as part of the Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts' Communicator Awards. The Communicator Awards is a leading international awards program recognizing innovative ideas in marketing and communications. Founded over two decades ago, the awards program receives more than 6,000 entries from companies and agencies of all sizes, making it one of the largest competitions of its kind in the world. The Award of Distinction is presented for projects that exceed industry standards in quality and achievement.

Additionally, both the 2017 NCVRW Resource Guide and The Vicarious Trauma Toolkit won an Apex Award for Publications Excellence. The Apex Awards are sponsored by Communications Concepts, Inc., a firm that advises publishing, public relations, and marketing professionals on the best practices for improving their publications and communications programs.