Crime Victim Services Strategic Planning

In May 2013, OVC released the Vision 21: Transforming Victim Services Final Report. The Vision 21 initiative examined the current framework of the victim assistance field in the United States. The initiative was the first comprehensive assessment of the field in nearly 15 years. The FY 2015 Vision 21 Innovation Grants: Enhancing and Transforming Services for Victims of Crime solicitation furthers the goals of Vision 21 through 8 purpose areas. Purpose area #1 (State Strategic Planning) focusses on developing, enhancing supporting, and/or institutionalizing a cross-cutting strategic planning process at the local, tribal, and state levels, involving all stakeholders, including crime victims.

Under this OVC-funded state strategic planning effort, the North Dakota Council on Abused Women’s Services (CAWS North Dakota – DV/SA coalition for the state), plans to develop a statewide strategy to enhance services offered to crime victims in North Dakota communities. Specifically, CAWS will: create and distribute a request for proposals to facilitate the strategic planning process; select one of the proposals and negotiate a contract for services; work with the project contractor to convene a multi-disciplinary stakeholder working group to assist in the development of a comprehensive needs assessment plan and process; administer the needs assessment, compile the information, and present it to the working group to for review and discussion; and hold working group meetings to review data, implement a strategic plan and issue copies of the strategic plan to their constituents for review and feedback and finalize the plan. The strategic plan will be distributed and used by CAWS in future funding decisions. CA/NCF