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Coalition Connection
Your Weekly Source of News, Trainings, and Events
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Through a collective voice,
the WCADVSA is committed to provide leadership, education, and systems advocacy to advance social change and end violence.
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Welcome to your weekly edition of the Coalition Connection!
Not sure of the purpose of this newsletter? Click here to learn more. Are you having difficulty viewing this e-mail or do you feel like you are missing some of the information in the Connection? If so, click here for a few helpful hints.
We will highlight important information in this section each week that requires your action or attention. This week's highlights include:
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Opportunity
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Violence Educators Research Project Participants Needed
My name is Julia O'Connor and I am an assistant professor in social work and a member of the Violence Against Women cluster at the University of Central Florida. We are currently conducting a research project on community violence education during the pandemic. The purpose of this study is to understand both the experiences of violence educators during COVID.
We are looking to interview educators in the field for a 45-60 minute virtual interview. All participants will received a $25 gift card to a location of their choice.
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WCADVSA Seeking Prevention Specialist
This is a full-time position with generous benefits and salary.
Qualifications include, but are not limited to:
- Bachelor's degree in public health, human services, victim services, or a closely related field or an equivalent experience level. Three years related work experience in primary prevention and advocacy preferred.
- Understanding causes of violence rooted in racism and oppression as connected to domestic violence, sexual violence, dating violence, and stalking with a strong commitment to ending violence and oppression of all peoples.
- Experience in social justice, systems advocacy, and social change work.
- Experience with primary prevention of violence work, particularly in implementing comprehensive prevention strategies and an understanding of program evaluation.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Develop and implement activities based on the goals and objectives of current funding sources, and complete required reports.
- Through an anti-oppression framework, build local and statewide capacity for sexual violence prevention by researching, developing expertise, and providing primary prevention technical assistance, training, programming, and education to funded sub-grantees, local domestic violence/sexual assault (DVSA) programs, community stakeholders, and partners.
- Create and build partnerships with other teams or groups who share the mission of sexual violence prevention for addressing complimentary activities such as coalition building, community mobilization, policy review, and implementation.
Application deadline is August 27.
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WCADVSA Staff Attorney Position
The WCADVSA Legal Project is funded through a grant received from the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program. The Legal Project has been funded by OVW since 1998 in competitive grant cycles. Two Staff Attorney positions and a Legal Assistant position are funded to complete the grant goals which include providing direct civil legal services on behalf of victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking statewide.
Located within the WCADVSA's Legal Project office in Ft. Washakie, WY. Qualifications:
- Licensed to practice law in Wyoming.
- Knowledge of Wyoming courts, laws and procedures.
- Thorough understanding of family law, civil procedure, evidence, ethics and familiarity with criminal law.
- Understanding of issues and willingness to continue to learn about issues related to
domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault and a strong commitment to ending
violence against women. - Ability to provide professional, high quality and sensitive legal services to victims of
domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. - Ability to counsel and advise clients and provide referrals for people who are in crisis.
- Willingness and ability to work with people from varied backgrounds, cultures,
ethnicities and abilities. - Proficiency with computer and Internet technologies and software programs,
including Microsoft Word and Excel. - Ability to work with law office management databases, including ABACUS.
- Strong written and oral communication skills.
- Demonstrated ability to manage time, keep detailed statistics, evaluate progress and
adjust activities to complete work within established time frames. - Ability to handle multiple projects and work independently as well as collaboratively.
- Demonstrated team building, limit setting, problem solving, creative/analytical
thinking and organizational skills, including report writing and grant writing. - Demonstrated project management skills, including staff supervision.
- Commitment to collaboration, team-building and professional development of staff.
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Accepting Proposals for 17th Annual Conference on Crimes Against Women 
The Conference on Crimes Against Women (CCAW) is currently seeking proposals for workshops, case studies, computer labs, lunch sessions, and film screenings for our 17th Annual Conference to be held May 23-25, 2022.
Proposals should focus on practical, hands-on techniques attendees can apply on the job and be geared towards combatting gender-based crimes.
Please click HERE for detailed submission instructions. The deadline for submitting a proposal for the 2021 CCAW is Thursday, September 30, 2021. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss your proposal before submitting, please email Shawn Guy, CCAW Program Manager, at: sguy@conferencecaw.org.
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Our Work
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2021 Wyoming Conference for Violence Prevention & Response Planning Committee 
We are currently seeking individuals to be a part of a creative and dynamic team that will plan the 2021 Wyoming Conference for Violence Prevention and Response!
If you are interested in participating on this planning committee, please complete this short form. You'll be notified no later than Sept 13th if you have been selected to participate on the planning committee.
If you have any questions about the conference or planning committee please reach out to Jody Sanborn at jsanborn@wyomingdvsa.org or 307-684-2454. Thank you!
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Survivor Storytelling Workshops and Advisory Council
More Survivor Storytelling Workshops Coming Up
Save the Dates - registration links to come!
Workshop A: Evenings 7:00-9:00 pm
Tuesday, September 21 & Thursday, September 30
Workshop B: Mornings 10:00 am - 12:00 noon
Wednesday, September 22 & Friday, October 1
A Virtual Inaugural Convening of the WCADVSA Survivor Advisory Council
Save the Date - Tuesday, October 19- 7:00-9:00 pm
All survivors are invited, especially those who have gone through the story telling workshops. For more information, please contact Tara Muir or Susie Markus.
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Updated Mask Guidance from the CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued updated guidance on Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People. In consideration of that guidance, as well as instructions from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), there are immediate updates that will affect DHS COVID-19 safety guidance for USCIS offices.
Starting Wednesday, July 28:
- In all areas of the country, all Federal employees, onsite contractors, and visitors, regardless of vaccination status or level of COVID transmission in your local area, are required to wear a mask inside all DHS workspaces and Federal buildings. This guidance takes into account the most recent CDC and OMB guidance and incorporates recommendations from the DHS Workforce Health and Safety and DHS Chief Medical Officer teams.
- Employees and visitors who appear at a field office without a face covering will be provided one from existing supply.
- All Federal employees, onsite contractors, and visitors must continue to physically distance and follow workplace protection guidance consistent with CDC and Agency guidance.
As part of its updated guidance, CDC reiterated that fully vaccinated people are at substantially reduced risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 compared with unvaccinated people. Fully vaccinated individuals should get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
The new advice is to mask up indoors if you live in a place with "substantial" or "high" coronavirus transmission. (The guidance for people who are unvaccinated remains the same: Always mask up indoors.)
Thank you for your patience, flexibility, and adherence to these evolving guidelines.
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Transitional Housing Voluntary Services Training E-Learning 
The NNEDV Voluntary Services Training in 2021 will be completed through an e-learning module. MOU partners (WCADVSA member programs) are encouraged to participate in the e-learning module if they are providing direct services. There is no limit on the number of staff who can take this e-learning course. But at least one person needs to complete the courses for the agency.
There are 8 lessons available. In total, you'll need to view 6 lessons to complete the training requirement. There are 5 mandatory lessons in Track A and 3 elective lessons in Track B. At least 1 lesson from Track B must be completed to meet the minimum lesson requirement.
Click this link to find the registration page. When you register, you will automatically be registered for both Tracks A and B and you will have access to all eight lessons. When you register, you'll be asked to create a username and password that is unique for you. Each person, who wants to take the course, should enroll separately. That way the certificate generates with your name on it.
The e-learning platform will track your progress. You can start, pause, and restart all of the lessons. Once you've viewed all of the lessons in Track A, and the lesson(s) you want to view in Track B, you'll need to complete the Course Completion Certification to obtain a certificate. In that quiz, you'll note the lesson(s) you viewed, and then click the "Print Your Certificate" button.
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Policy Updates
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The Wyoming VAWA Implementation Committee has a special populations survey for programs and survivors responses. The survey will be open for responses through August 20 and is available in both English and Spanish.
Remember, the people we are trying to reach are:
● Communities of Color
● Elderly (+65)
● Homeless, housing insecure, at-risk of becoming homeless within 6 months
● LGBTQ+
● Persons with Disabilities
● Immigrants, Refugees, or Asylum Seekers
● Limited English Proficiency
● Male Survivors of Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault
● Human Trafficking victims/survivors
● Military Personnel Survivors of Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault
● Secondary Victims (individuals who experienced an indirect consequence of the crime, which can
include relatives of the primary victims or individuals who witnessed the crime)
● Beliefs other than Christianity (e.g. Judaism, Islam, spirituality, atheism, agnostic)
● Resident of remote area (places that face significant challenges accessing services relative to larger communities in Wyoming)
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If you, survivors, staff, board, members of your community response team or other partners are invited. If they would like to learn more or discuss ideas for fixing state statutes in order to keep survivors safer and hold offenders more accountable - the monthly policy call is where to go!
Next call August 27 12 noon - 1 pm - brown bag it on Zoom!
August 27th agenda will include further discussion on address confidentiality programs and victim rights for sexual assault survivors.
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Training and Events |
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Wyoming Webinars, Training, and Events
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Lunch With Legislators Webinar - August 24 
We are thrilled to be planning for the Wyoming Women's Legislative Caucus "2022 Leap into Leadership" event to be held in Cheyenne, Wyoming. As you know, the mission of the Wyoming Women's Legislative Caucus is to increase the leadership skills and potential of Wyoming women through events, trainings, networking, and resources.
As we continue to work on the details of the 2022 event, and since we didn't get to meet much last year we thought we could bring everyone together again...at least virtually! We want to invite you to attend a free webinar,
"Lunch with Legislators" August 24th from 12:00 - 1:00pm.
The Wyoming Women's Legislative Caucus board of directors, Representative Sue Wilson, Representative Cathy Connolly and Senator Affie Ellis will be joining us to discuss their road to becoming a Wyoming Legislator.
If you would like to attend, please RSVP to info@wyowlc.org. You will then receive the Zoom information.
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USDA Rural Development Emergency Rural Health Care Program
Webinar - August 25 
USDA is providing up to $500 million in grant funding for eligible applicants and eligible facilities to help broaden access to COVID-19 testing and vaccines, health care services, telehealth services, food assistance through food banks and food distribution facilities, and collaborative, evidence-based support for the long-term sustainability of rural health care.
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Wyoming Coalition for Animal Protection Upcoming Virtual Trainings 
Please join us for these free virtual trainings offered through WYCAP, HSUS, and ALDF, (See attached schedule).
These two organizations are being very generous in offering these sessions for free to WYCAP members, so let's support them! Both topics are vital to our mission and should be extremely informative for us all.
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Healthy Moms, Happy Babies (HMHB) Community-Based Webinar 
Coming to Your Community in Summer 2021!
Many staff of home visitation, early childhood and similar programs struggle with how best to address issues of domestic violence (DV) among their clients. The impact of DV on parents' and children's physical and mental health and risk for substance use and persistent perinatal depression is well documented. To support communities' capacity in DV prevention, response, and healing, we are providing Healthy Moms, Happy Babies (HMHB) webinars. We aspire to reach each county in Wyoming, and invite you to lead in identifying community partners to invite to the webinars.
This summer and early fall, a team of people from Wyoming Departments of Family Services, Health, and Corrections, along with Wyoming Children's Trust Fund and WCADVSA, will provide training. The 3-hour webinar provides healing approaches to DV prevention and response for staff of home visitation, early childhood, and other community programs, with attuned approaches to DV for survivors.
HMHB is an interactive curriculum that addresses the barriers and difficulties staff experience in addressing DV. The training will address how personal and or vicarious trauma or abuse may impact our ability to do this work. Specific strategies and tools, personal and organizational, will be presented to address the needs of front-line staff and managers so that they feel adequately situated to hear a positive disclosure of abuse.
We hope sharing in this interactive learning space with your fellow community members and organizations will be another capacity building opportunity for all. If you're interested, please click here to choose some weeks that look good for a potential webinar for your community, and Susie will reach out to you to talk about this in more detail. For more information email Susie Markus or call her at 307-222-3352 or 307-274-6292.
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National Webinars, Training, and Events
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Innovations at the Intersection: Centering Survivors with Disabilities in the Movement
Survivors with disabilities are experts in their own lived experiences, so they should guide our work to ensure services are accessible and responsive to their needs. To meaningfully work with survivors with disabilities, you need to make sure everything you do is accessible and inclusive.
In this panel discussion, self-advocates from Washington, D.C. and Kansas who are working to address domestic and sexual violence against people with disabilities will share how their work empowers them as advocates and how they have partnered with their team members to play a meaningful leadership role.
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Online Healthy Masculinity Training Institute - October 2021 
During Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2021, increase your skill set to positively engage men and boys in the prevention of gender-based violence. Men Can Stop Rape is excited to offer our highly praised and effective online Healthy Masculinity Training Institute (HMTI) this October. As a three-part online series, the training institute is an opportunity to develop virtual primary prevention skills at an affordable fee, network with professionals across time zones and industries, and be a part of the healthy masculinity movement.
HMTI Dates and Registration:
No matter where you are in the country or world, HMTI will help you move from theory to practice, from awareness to action, when mobilizing men and boys. Participants will learn the scientific theories, strength-based approach, and dynamic exercises that are part of MCSR's 24-year history, including our current socially distancing practices for mobilizing boys and men.
Learn more about the HMTI and see our evaluation data here on our website. Add yourself to our distribution list by filling out our form here!
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Click here to view a variety of upcoming webinars, national training, and conferences.
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Resource Center |
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1) The lives and futures of Afghan women and girls are in grave danger.
Twenty years ago, the United States made promises to support the work of Afghan women's rights, increase representation of Afghan women in government, and improve their civil liberties. All of these advances are in jeopardy now that the Taliban has taken control of the country.
2) Student survivors of sexual assault need protection now- not in a year or two. The Department of Education (DOE) is currently planning to wait a year to start reversing the previous administration's Title IX rule that made it easier for schools to sweep sexual harassment and sexual assault claims under the rug.
Take Action: Join the Ed Act Now Campaign to demand DOE promptly start to dismantle former Sec. DeVos's changes to Title IX.
3) Millions of LGBTQ+ people are still in danger of being evicted, fired, denied medical care, or attacked by bigots who fear their sexual and gender identities. The Equality Act builds upon our nation's nondiscrimination laws by providing consistent and explicit non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people.
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Sonya Passi, our Founder & CEO, discusses economic abuse with Jonathan Van Ness on their podcast, Getting Curious with JVN - What is economic abuse and why is it important to shift the way we address intimate partner violence? Jonathan and Sonya discussed what it looks like to reframe intimate partner violence as a structural economic issue, and what it will take to ensure that survivors have the support they need to thrive. ~ As a sensitivity warning, this episode discusses intimate partner violence in detail.
The dating app company, Bumble, has announced a package of new benefits for its 700 employees. These new benefits include 20 days of paid and protected leave for employees who are dealing with the consequences of intimate partner violence. Bumble employees will also now have access to unlimited paid vacation and 2 weeks of company-wide paid time off so everyone can recharge as a community.
The number 1 reason survivors stay in or return to situations of abuse is that they can't afford to stay safe. Providing paid and protected leave to employees experiencing gender-based violence allows survivors to deal with the consequences of harm without worrying about losing their job.
Contact FreeFrom's Director of Systems Change Initiatives, Amy Durrence, if you'd like to work with us to implement a paid leave policy at your business.
We're hiring for two new positions - know someone who should join our team?
We intentionally cultivate a spirit of creativity and experimentation in our work, understanding that we must be willing to try new approaches and apply new frameworks in order to solve a systemic problem like IPV.
On a typical FreeFrom work day, you can find us: sharing our wins, challenges, and ideas for innovation; wearing stuffed animal slippers; talking astrology, art, literature, movies, healing, new research, and feel-good things; taking breaks to hang out with the kids in our learning pod (the kids of staff who are currently doing e-learning from the office with a trained professional); sharing memes and ways to prioritize self-care on our group chat; testing tech, client products, and theories; and collaborating on exciting projects.
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RedRover is a national animal welfare nonprofit that helps domestic violence survivors escape with their pets through several grant opportunities and the SafePlaceForPets.org website.
Our grant opportunities include covering the cost of boarding while a survivor stays at a domestic violence (DV) shelter (Safe Escape grants) to helping create pet housing programs at DV shelters (Safe Housing grants). Also, we are now able to offer up to $60,000 (previously $20,000) for our Safe Housing grants which may be used to create housing for pets at DV shelters or at a partner animal welfare organization.
The next round of applications are due October 15th and then again on May 15th, 2022.
We'd also like to share our new collaborative project, Don't Forget the Pets, with you. In partnership with Greater Good Charities' Rescue Rebuild program, we offer free support to DV organizations in creating pet housing programs through the website (includes our training handbook), training workshops, a discussion forum, and our Coaching program.
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July was a productive month for NNEDV, from the passage of the historic VOCA Fix legislation to our hosting a successful Tech Summit. The passage of VOCA Fix is a massive victory for the field and one of NNEDV's top legislative priorities. This victory has energized NNEDV as we continue to advocate for more resources for programs and increased protections for survivors.
We also hosted our 9th annual Tech Summit. The Summit is a reminder of the power technology-
when used for good it can connect communities, help movement leaders organize and advocate, and increase safety for all. Click here to read newsletter highlights on how NNEDV uses technology for advocacy, information sharing, and supporting survivors, while we also work to stop tech-facilitated abuse.
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ERAP Updates: Eviction Moratorium Extension
As of August 12, ERAP has approved a total of 1,031 applications, or 45% of submitted applications, paying a total of $3.2M in assistance. Of the rental payments, $2.5M went to landlords, $543K to renters and $238K to utilities.
The majority of Wyoming counties currently fall under the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)'s recent eviction moratorium extension, which goes until Oct. 3, 2021. The new CDC order applies only to Wyoming counties listed as substantial or high-level community transmission of COVID-19. The affected Wyoming counties are identified on the CDC COVID tracker ( Click here to see the updated tracker). Please check the tracker regularly as levels may change based on updated data.
To qualify for the new eviction moratorium protection, renters must provide a signed declaration to their landlord indicating they qualify for the eviction protections. The CDC has created a standardized declaration form that can be downloaded here.
If facing eviction, please contact Legal Aid of Wyoming, a sub-recipient of Equal Justice. They may be able to provide other legal assistance to eligible ERAP renters living in Wyoming such as:
- Lease agreement advice/negotiation
- Eviction defense
- Disputes that could lead to eviction
- Financial issues directly related to the home you rent (disputes about security deposits, damages claims, late fees, etc.)
- Issues related to the safety of the home you rent
- Financial matters affecting your ability to maintain or obtain housing such as: debt collection defense, federal benefits (SSI/SSDI), employment matters (FMLA, disability accommodations), and consumer protection actions to obtain tenant funds lost to scams.
ERAP Income Eligibility Requirements
You meet the income eligibility requirements if your total household income is equal to or less than 80% the area median income (AMI). Your AMI depends on how many people live in your household and the county you live in. Please reference the tables below to see the 80% AMI applicable to your household using either annual or monthly income. Click here to view chart.
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Spotlight |
Welcome Charlotte, Halli, and Taylor!
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Charlotte Rand - Program Attorney
Charlotte is the new Staff Attorney in the Cody office. She is committed to combatting domestic violence and sexual assault, and is excited to be part of the Coalition.
Charlotte moved to Cody from Alaska, where she worked as Special Assistant to the Attorney General and focused on combatting human trafficking and the corollary crimes of domestic violence and sexual assault. She has worked with prosecutors, law enforcement, state agencies, service providers and community stakeholders to increase awareness of and establish data-driven practices to address sex and labor trafficking in the State of Alaska.
She loves spending time outdoors, fishing, reading, cooking, dogs and being in the company of friends and family.
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Halli Berrebbi - Americorps VISTA, Laramie Office
My name is Halli Berrebbi and I am an AmeriCorps VISTA serving for the Wyoming Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (WCADVSA).
I am a recent college graduate with a B.A. in International Affairs and Government/Law hoping to attend law school in the future. I have been involved in sexual assault work since 2019 when I was motivated by all of the sexual assault issues happening at my college. I really wanted to get to the root of the problem and do my part to make change for myself and my fellow students. After learning more about the issues and gaining experience, I was inspired to go and fight beyond the space I was in.
This inspiration led me here, to Laramie, with the WCADVSA. In my year of service, my main goal is to take in the stories and knowledge of those around me so that I can learn as much as I possibly can. I hope to use what I will learn to help this organization continue to be a driving force in the fight against domestic violence and sexual assault, as well as apply my experience here in my future endeavors. I am so grateful for the opportunity to be involved with such a great organization that fights for such a noble cause. Together, we can end violence for all.
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Taylor Pajunen - Americorps VISTA, Ft. Washakie Office
Hiiii. My name is Taylor :) I'm from Iowa but went to Loyola Marymount in LA. My time at LMU was full of tension but overall, community. I swam collegiately and with my team, I began processing/speaking up on the toxic world of sport. In this, I was prompted to think critically about the space I take up as a cis-het white woman in movements. This led me to start a white anti-racist affinity group that centered on striving towards accompliceship.
I double majored in Anti-Racism Studies (an Individualized Studies major) and Spanish. With many mentors, I designed the anti-racism major towards decentering whiteness, while also thinking heavily about my role as a white person (yes... a lot of tension within that). I wanted to learn Spanish because I thought that I wanted to do immigration law after a family friend was deported in high school.
However, being introduced to Critical Race Theory has made me start thinking about the
inadvertent pitfalls of law and working within systems. CRT also started to give me language for the burnout I began feeling while trying to work within the athletics dept. Last year, I was asked to serve on the E-board of our Indigenous Student Union to fill a vacancy. This ended up being an extremely difficult but important experience as it especially challenged me to think critically on my own and the institution of LMU's whiteness.
I want to uplift the work of the group members and Indigenous people in the continued fight for justice within the institution and the US. But... with all this... I'm also not quite sure what I'm doing right now. And that's ok. I do know that community is a crucial part of who I am.
The pandemic has forced me to just sit with many tensions and contradictions and I hope my time in the coalition can allow me to continue a practice of just being... That doesn't mean just sit and not do anything... but instead continue to engage in reimagining (as a community... as a family) the world in which we wish to live.
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Wyoming Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
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Copyright © 2017. All Rights Reserved.
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