Strategic federal grant planning that led to a $700,000 OVW Rural Program award and lasting impact for Georgia survivors.
Written by Dr. Amy Drews, PhD, GPC
In Spring 2024, RIC partnered with Satilla Advocacy Services (SAS), a dual sexual assault and child advocacy center serving six rural counties in Southeast Georgia, to develop and submit a highly competitive grant proposal to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) Rural Program.
SAS, formed in 1996, has a long-standing reputation for delivering comprehensive, trauma-informed services for survivors of sexual assault and child abuse in Bacon, Brantley, Charlton, Coffee, Pierce, and Ware counties. It is the only dual agency in its primary six-county service area, providing both child advocacy and sexual assault services.
This potential funding represented an opportunity for SAS to deepen services in its rural service area and improve access for Limited English Proficient (LEP) survivors. To ensure a successful application, we met weekly and implemented a grant development process that included:
â—Ź Creating a milestone tracker to manage timelines, assign responsibilities, and meet internal and application deadlines.
â—Ź Aligning all sections of the proposal with the OVW scoring rubric to ensure we earn maximum points in each category.
â—Ź Gathering data to illustrate need and organizational capacity, including service statistics and regional demographics.
More on what OVW reviewers look for in a competitive application.
We grounded the proposal in SAS’s 2023 impact, listing the number of survivors served and detailing specific services provided, including the 24-hour crisis hotline, forensic medical exams and interviews, therapy services, advocacy, outreach, and education. We also addressed critical gaps, including transportation and communication barriers in rural areas. While headquartered in Waycross, additional satellite offices would reduce access issues for both survivors and multidisciplinary team partners, such as first responders and healthcare providers.
In Fall 2024, the OVW Rural Program awarded SAS a three-year $700,000 grant. This funding enabled SAS to enhance staff to better serve sexual assault survivors in its rural service area, purchase equipment for forensic medical examinations, develop bilingual outreach and prevention materials, provide real-time translation services to improve accessibility for LEP survivors, and increase outreach and services to underserved Hispanic communities.
Survivor feedback illustrates the powerful impact of SAS’s work in rural Georgia and the vital role of continued funding, such as the OVW Rural grant. Survey responses reflect overwhelmingly positive experiences, with survivors saying they felt safer after speaking with staff. They shared that the organization helped them manage overwhelming emotions and better prepare for daily life challenges.
Survivors also felt strongly supported, saying that staff made it clear the abuse was not their fault. Respondents also expressed a high level of inclusion and empowerment, saying they received valuable guidance for safety planning.
