A University Partnership for Victim Service Professional Development: Model Standards for Serving Victims and Survivors of Crime

• NCJ Number: 251235
• Journal: Journal of Criminal Justice Education Volume: 25 Issue: 4 Dated: October 2014 Pages: 421-434
• Author(s): Dana Dehart
• Date Published: October 2014
• Length: 14 pages
• Grant Number(s): 1999-VF-GX-K012; 2010-VF-GX-K019
• Sponsoring Agency: Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)
• Publication Format: Article; Document (Online)
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article describes processes and products of a partnership to promote professionalization of the field of victim services.

Abstract

The National Victim Assistance Standards Consortium was established by the federal Office for Victims of Crime in partnership with the University of South Carolina. The Consortium reached across geographic, philosophical, and disciplinary divides to forge a common ground in professional development, including a definition and mission for the field as well as three sets of model standards for serving victims and survivors. The project included a review of literature on victim services, town hall meetings across the country, and layered review and refinement of standards by approximately 50 professionals working at the local, state, and national levels. The online document, Achieving Excellence: Model Standards for Serving Victims & Survivors of Crime, will provide standards for promoting competence and ethical integrity, as well as quality and consistency of service. (Publisher abstract modified)