Many communities throughout the U.S. struggle to develop solutions to problems of violence and victimization. This struggle can be especially pronounced in small towns, rural and tribal areas, where vast distances and lack of resources and specialized expertise all work against comprehensive solutions. LISC Safety & Justice is working with the U.S. DOJ Bureau of Justice Assistance on its Rural Violent Crime Reduction Initative.
LISC is providing training, technical assistance and microgrants to help rural agencies and their community partners build the understanding, capacity, and access to resources necessary to successfully address crime and overcome both universal challenges and those unique to the rural context. Our assistance focuses on four critical elements we know are key to implementing successful community-led, multi-disciplinary safety efforts: (1) Community engagement - building stakeholder involvement and trust; (2) Data and Research - incorporating evidence-informed practices into strategic decision-making processes, (3) Cross-sector partnerships - ensuring all organizations are collaborating with a common vision/mission; and (4) Integrated revitalization responses - ensuring safe, healthy, and violence-free communities.
Grants
LISC is partnering with the National Policing Institute to provide grant awards to help rural communities accomplish the following:
- Community outreach and engagement opportunities to support improved relationships and encourage community leadership
- Partnerships with community-based partners to support problem-solving around persistent crime challenges
- Place-based approaches incorporating collaborations with community or economic development partners on revitalization opportunities that complement law enforcement interventions
- Cross-sector partnership teams to manage implementation of activities including Community Violence Intervention (CVI) approaches to crime reduction, reentry programming for returning citizens and Alternatives to Incarceration opportunities.
Eighteen rural communities are currently building capacity with grants, training, and technical assistance from LISC.
- Bethel, AK
- Burke County, GA
- Eagle County, CO
- Fairmont, NC
- Fort Valley, GA
- Greenville, MS
- Kewanee, IL
- Mendocino, CA
- Mifflin County, PA
- Oneida, NY
- Pembroke, NC
- Red Springs, NC
- Rowland, NC
- St. Mary Parish, LA
- Tamaqua, PA
- Vail, CO
- Vernon County, WI
- Webster County, IA
RVCRI is an effort funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to assist rural communities seeking to address violent crime.
The DOJ Bureau of Justice Assistance is supporting data-driven, comprehensive responses to crime in some of the country’s most troubled communities through BCJI.
This web site is funded in part through a grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Neither the U.S. Department of Justice nor any of its components operate, control, are responsible for, or necessarily endorse, this web site (including, without limitation, its content, technical infrastructure, and policies, and any services or tools provided).