Information Letter About the Project
Making the Connection:
Building Stronger Relationships Between Sexual Assault Service Providers and Transgender Survivors
June 13, 2011
Dear transgender community members and sexual assault service providers:
Transgender individuals have one of the highest recorded rates of sexual violence. Over 50% of transgender people are sexual assault survivors. Yet transgender survivors seldom access mainstream sexual assault services. Why?
Transgender individuals (and communities) may be hesitant to seek sexual assault services for a wide variety of reasons. Likewise, sexual assault service providers (and agencies) may be unsure of how to reach out to better serve transgender survivors.
Learn more!
With support from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Victims for Crime (OVC), FORGE — a national transgender organization specializing in sexual violence — is offering a unique opportunity for sexual assault service providers and transgender community members to work together to:
- Evaluate what barriers in your community might be keeping transgender survivors from accessing services;
- Cross-train on local transgender and sexual violence resources and issues;
- Select key barriers identified by participants;
- Create an action plan to begin addressing barriers; and
- Assess success and determine what, if any, additional monitoring, support, or work will be done.
Three or four communities will be selected from letters of interest submitted by sexual assault service providers and/or transgender community members.
What FORGE will provide.
- Tailored assessment tools to identify barriers and strengths;
- Training and facilitation of a 1-2 day intensive and initial planning session in your city/community;
- Assistance with follow-up meetings, which can include scheduling and facilitating (if phone based);
- Ongoing technical assistance, consultation, resource identification, and problem-solving; and
- Evaluation and assistance in planning next steps.
What you/your community will provide.
- Eagerness to better serve transgender survivors of sexual violence.
- Commitment to participating throughout the project: from assessment to in-person training to follow-up next steps.
- Willingness to work together with other members of the community – both transgender individuals and sexual assault service providers.
Note on Funding: Communities will not receive funding from FORGE. FORGE will provide free training and technical assistance.
How to apply.
You can learn more about the project, application and selection process by attending a free teleconference prior to submitting a Letter of Interest.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 @ 2:00pm Central (Register: https://cc.readytalk.com/r/952c86z7ikjs)
or
Thursday, July 7, 2011 @ 6:00pm Central (Register: https://cc.readytalk.com/r/x7t5xocbnvju)
(To register, click on the link above, or type it into your web browser. Note: each date has a unique link to register.)
Potential applicants do not need to participate in a teleconference in order to submit a proposal. Simply follow the suggested guideline questions and submit your Letter of Interest.
Dates and details.
Project length:
Projects will span six months to one year in length, depending on the goals the community identifies.
Application deadline:
Letters of Interest are due on or before Monday, July 18, 2011.
We look forward to hearing from you and helping you serve your community.
Sincerely,
Michael Munson
Executive Director
Loree Cook-Daniels
Program and Policy Director
