We are no longer accepting applications for the 2013 International Conference on Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, and Stalking in Baltimore, MD from April 3-5, 2013 and 2013 Crimes Against Women Conference in Dallas, TX from April 8-10, 2013.

The Office for Victims of Crime is pleased to announce the availability of Professional Development Scholarships to those who work with victims of crime. The program provides up to $1,000 for individuals and up to $5,000 for multidisciplinary teams of victim service professionals seeking continuing education opportunities. The scholarship program is administered by the Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC). OVC TTAC provides comprehensive quality training and technical assistance resources to victim service providers and other professionals.

Scholarship awards are based on eligibility, are limited to available funds, and are processed in the order in which applications are received. Scholarships are nontransferable and can be used only for professional development related to an applicant's responsibilities for serving victims of crime. OVC TTAC must receive the completed Individual or Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Professional Development Scholarship application and all application materials at least 45 calendar days prior to the event or the request will be rejected - NO EXCEPTIONS.

Want to let people know that training scholarships are available? Simply follow the directions on the Link to Us page to download and create a graphical link to the OVC Professional Development Scholarship Program page from your Web site.

We are no longer accepting applications for the 2013 International Conference on Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, and Stalking in Baltimore, MD from April 3-5, 2013 and 2013 Crimes Against Women Conference in Dallas, TX from April 8-10, 2013.

Eligibility Requirements

Eligible applicants include service providers from any organization – public, nonprofit, or faith-based – who assist victims of crime within the United States, District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and any other territory of the United States, but do not have an adequate budget to support training, are eligible for the OVC Professional Development Scholarship Program:

• Victim service providers;
• Victim service advocates;
• Social service providers;
• Mental health workers;
• Healthcare professionals;
• Substance abuse workers;
• Law enforcement professionals (who provide direct victim services);
• Prosecutors (who provide direct victim services).

Individuals as well as multidisciplinary teams of up to five individuals may apply (e.g. prosecutors, victim service providers, law enforcement professionals, health care providers, etc.).

Ineligible applicants include:

• OVC TTAC consultants;
• Federal employees;
• Military personnel;
• Individuals featured as speakers or trainers for the event in which they are requesting support;
• Individuals who do not provide direct services to victims of crime.

Staff, volunteers, advocates, and allied professionals must provide documentation of one (1) year of experience serving crime victims at their current organization. An emphasis is placed on individuals or multidisciplinary teams who deliver direct services to victims, and on allied practitioners in small victim services and advocacy organizations with very limited operational budgets.

Organizations sponsoring staff or volunteers may be public, nonprofit, or faith-based. In all instances, these agencies must demonstrate that their budgets are insufficient to support the training needs of direct service staff, volunteers or program managers. Exceptions can be made on a case-by-case basis if the need for training, budgetary constraints and appropriateness of target population served are established, or if the training objectives will be enhanced by sending a multidisciplinary team of several staff from different agencies, but from the same jurisdiction.

Award Criteria

• OVC TTAC must receive the completed Individual or Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Professional Development Scholarship application and all application materials at least 45 calendar days prior to the event or the request will be rejected - NO EXCEPTIONS;
• If applying as a MDT, the applications were submitted as a group (Note: Incomplete MDT submissions will be returned to the requestor. When all team members have completed the MDT application, it may be resubmitted for processing by OVC TTAC and consideration by OVC);
• The applicant has provided direct services to victims of crime or worked on behalf of victims of crime in his or her organization for at least one year;
• The applicant's organization has insufficient funds for training;
• The training is delivered by a stable organization that has provided crime victim services for a minimum of 12 months and the listed services will remain available for the foreseeable future;
• The application clearly states how the training relates to the applicant's current work in serving victims of crime;
• The training will significantly increase knowledge or skills of the applicant;
• The request for training is supported by the applicant's organization;
• The event has been deemed to further OVC's organizational mission and professional objectives for victim services staff;
• The event focuses primarily on victims' rights, services, and/or skills and educational development.

Scholarship applicants are encouraged to check other sources of financial assistance and combine aid from various sources whenever possible. OVC reserves the right to deny scholarships to individuals or multidisciplinary teams seeking financial support to attend a training or event supported by other OVC discretionary or formula grant funding.

Once approved, individuals who do not notify OVC TTAC of their inability to attend the event in advance of the event start date and do not attend all training days of OVC-sponsored events (i.e., NVAA, OVC Training Schedule events) will be required to pay the associated tuition fees and cover all of their own expenses. Additionally, the agency where the individual works will be ineligible to apply for a Professional Development Scholarship for the next twelve (12) months.

Consultants and Prospective Consultants Interested in Applying for Professional Development Scholarships

Consultants and prospective consultants who wish to apply for Professional Development Scholarships should be aware of the following policies:

• OVC TTAC consultants who are enrolled in the OVC TTAC Consultant Database are not eligible to receive Professional Development Scholarships.
• If an enrolled consultant has not received an assignment in 12 consecutive months and wishes to be removed from the OVC TTAC Consultant Database, OVC TTAC will honor the request to be removed and the consultant may apply for a Professional Development Scholarship.
• If an enrolled consultant has received a training or technical assistance assignment (TTA) in the past 12 months and requests to be withdrawn from the OVC TTAC Consultant Database, he or she will have to wait 12 months from his or her last assignment before applying for a Professional Development Scholarship.
• An individual who received a Professional Development Scholarship may become a consultant without penalty after 12 or more months from the date of receipt of the scholarship.
• If an individual applies to be a consultant less than 12 months after receiving a Professional Development Scholarship, he or she will not receive consultant fees for the first two days of his or her TTA assignments.

We are no longer accepting applications for the 2013 International Conference on Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, and Stalking in Baltimore, MD from April 3-5, 2013 and 2013 Crimes Against Women Conference in Dallas, TX from April 8-10, 2013.

We strongly suggest reading the program information below before clicking the "Apply" button at the bottom of the page.

• What does the scholarship pay for?
• What is a multidisciplinary team?
• What is the maximum award?
• When is the application due?
• When will I be notified of an award decision?
• What are the reimbursement requirements?
• How do I apply?
• What if I have additional questions?
• Where do I send completed applications?

What does the scholarship pay for?

The OVC Professional Development Scholarship covers some or all of the following:

• Tuition/Registration fees (excluding late registration fees).
• Transportation expenses (up to the federal government rate).
• Lodging expenses (up to the federal government rate).
• Meals/incidentals (up to the federal government rate).

Please note the following:

• Training and tuition fees or conference registration fees will be paid directly to the event sponsor or its designee. The exception is individuals traveling from outside the contiguous United States (e.g., Alaska) will be granted a scholarship of up to $1,500.
• Registration fee payments are limited to early registrants. Scholarship recipients are expected to preregister for training events, as more costly, late registration fees will not be accepted as scholarship-covered expenses.
• Transportation expenses may include round-trip coach airfare, train fare, or personal car mileage. If scholarship recipients choose to drive to an event, the maximum amount allowed for reimbursement for POV mileage must be less than the estimated cost of airfare.
• Scholarship recipients are expected to take advantage of excursion or other special airfares (e.g., at least 14 days advance purchase or a Saturday night stay) when making their travel arrangements. Personal car mileage will be reimbursed at the current federal mileage rate ($.565 per mile) incurred to and from the program site(s). Rental cars are not covered. Recipients are expected to use airfare or train fare if either of those expenditures is cheaper than travel by personal vehicle.

What is a multidisciplinary team?

A multidisciplinary team consists of individuals from various disciplines collaborating to assist victims. One example of such a team would be a SART, or Sexual Assault Response Team, which typically consists of a prosecutor, a victim advocate, a forensic nursing or medical practitioner, and a law enforcement officer. No single discipline can be represented more than once within the team. Each team member must fill out an application. Individual applications CANNOT be duplicates of one another, nor completed by the same person for the entire team.
Applications for a Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Scholarship must be submitted as a group for consideration. Incomplete MDT submissions will be returned to the requester. When all team members have completed the MDT application, it may be resubmitted for processing by OVC TTAC and consideration by OVC.

What is the maximum award?

• Not more than $1,000 in scholarship support will be awarded to any single recipient.
• Program funds are awarded based on the availability of funds.
• Only one individual per organization may receive a Professional Development Scholarship in any 12-month period from the date of the event.

When is the application due?

Applications will be reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis. OVC TTAC must receive the completed Individual or Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Professional Development Scholarship application and all application materials at least 45 calendar days prior to the event or the request will be rejected - NO EXCEPTIONS.

When will I be notified of an award decision?

Program applicants are notified of OVC's decision within 1 month of application receipt under normal circumstances.

What are the reimbursement requirements?

• Scholarship funds are provided through a reimbursement process after the conference.
• Reimbursement information must be submitted 14 calendar days after the event.
• Itemized receipts are required for all expenses incurred, including meals, taxis, etc.
• Scholarship recipients must complete ALL workshop requirements in order to be eligible for reimbursement.

How do I apply?

There are several ways you can apply for the OVC Professional Development Scholarship.

• Complete the online application after clicking "Apply" below.
• Download the application here (PDF 167 kb | MS Word 588 kb).
• Please see the Apply for an OVC Professional Development Scholarship page for full application instructions.

What if I have additional questions?

If you have questions regarding the application process, please contact the OVC Training and Technical Assistance Center at the address below.

Where do I send completed applications?

Please send the completed application to:

Office for Victims of Crime
Training and Technical Assistance Center
OVC Professional Development Scholarship Program
9300 Lee Highway
Fairfax, VA 22031-6050

Phone: 1-866-OVC TTAC (1-866-682-8822)
TTY: 1-866-682-8880
Fax: 703-225-2338

The Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format allows you to download, view, and print a document with all of its original formatting. To view PDF files, you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is freely available for download. For more information on accessibility and Acrobat Reader, visit the Adobe Accessibility Page.

We are no longer accepting applications for the 2013 International Conference on Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, and Stalking in Baltimore, MD from April 3-5, 2013 and 2013 Crimes Against Women Conference in Dallas, TX from April 8-10, 2013.

OVC TTAC must receive the completed Individual or Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Professional Development Scholarship application and all application materials at least 45 calendar days prior to the event or the request will be rejected - NO EXCEPTIONS. If you have any questions about the process, please call 1-866-OVC TTAC (1-866-682-8822) for assistance.

Apply Online

To apply for an OVC Professional Development (PD) Scholarship, read the PD Scholarship FAQs and complete the Online Application Form.

To complete your existing application, please login to access your application.

Apply by Mail

To apply by mail, download and complete the application form below:

Application (PDF 167 kb | MS Word 588 kb)

Mail the original and one photocopy of the completed form to the address below.

Office for Victims of Crime
Training and Technical Assistance Center
OVC Professional Development Scholarship Program
9300 Lee Highway
Fairfax, VA 22031-6050

The Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format allows you to download, view, and print a document with all of its original formatting. To view PDF files, you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is freely available for download. For more information on accessibility and Acrobat Reader, visit the Adobe Accessibility Page.