U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office for Victims of Crime

SEPTEMBER 2001

Denver Victim Services 2000 Community

Advocate Program

Victim Services 2000 (VS2000) isa multiyear demonstration project

sponsored and funded by the Office

for Victims of Crime (OVC). The

goal of the VS2000 grant program is

to improve the range, quality, and

accessibility of services for all types

of crime victims, whether in rural

or urban locations. OVC has two active demonstration sites: the State

of Vermont and the greater Denver,

Colorado, area. This fact sheet focuses on Denver’s Community

Advocate Program and is one publication in a series on the Denver

VS2000 demonstration project.

In 1997, OVC funded Denver as the

urban VS2000 demonstration site. The

project was guided by the VS2000 vision: to create a model network of resources in the community that provides

innovative, seamless, and integrated victim services. The grant directed that emphasis be placed on how to effectively

reach underserved and unserved populations, including victims from diverse cultures and victims with disabilities.

The Denver VS2000 project began with

a needs assessment to highlight gaps in

victim services. Input was gathered from

agency and client satisfaction surveys

and from focus groups that included victims who are traditionally underserved or

unserved by victim services. The victims

were asked what services they needed

and how those services should be delivered. Victims stated overwhelmingly that

they wanted services located in their

own communities. At the same time,

victims in underserved communities expressed a high degree of mistrust for

both systems-based and communitybased (nonprofit) service agencies and

were, for the most part, unaware of 

services—even those targeted to them.

This input provided the impetus for 

creating the Community Advocate

Program.

What Is a 

Community Advocate?

Community advocates (CAs) are

part of an outreach initiative of

the Denver VS2000 demonstration

project (referred to hereafter as

VS2000). These individuals are

known, respected, and involved

members of underserved and unserved

communities, and they provide crisis

intervention for crime victims in

these communities and serve as

trusted links to agencies providing

victim services. As community

members, CAs effectively connect

victims with needed services. In

their unique position, CAs can establish trust within a community

and build bridges between underserved or unserved victims and victim service providers.

At Work in the

Community

I

n Denver, victims often learn

about CAs through word of mouth.

CAs also publicize their services

at community meetings and other

gatherings at which they can distribute business cards and fliers.

Because CAs participate in community activities and meetings, they

become known and trusted by community members. As a result, victims feel safe and comfortable

asking CAs for help.
When contacted by a victim, the CA

provides crisis intervention as well as

ongoing followup and case management

to ensure that victims’ needs are fully

met. CAs help crime victims overcome

barriers to service, such as language differences and mistrust of the system.

Laptop computers give CAs in the field

access to the Denver VS2000 online

case management system and online resource directory, which help CAs provide better ongoing case management

services to victims.

CAs and Victim

Service Providers

As part of the VS2000 network ofservice providers, CAs have a

ready forum for networking, collaborating, making and receiving referrals, and consulting with other

victim service providers. Their

knowledge about service gaps and

issues for underserved and unserved

victims can inform the development

of a model victim service network.

Denver CAs provide quarterly crosstraining sessions to educate other

victim service providers about their

program and about the cultural issues central to working with victims

in their communities. They also recruit and work to maintain community representation on Denver

VS2000 teams.

Crimes Addressed

by CAs

Victimization can be caused by

violent and nonviolent crimes

against people and property. Effective CAs must be aware of all types

of crime that can victimize members

of the community and be prepared

to address every victim’s needs and

concerns, through direct services

and referrals.

Crimes against people include a range

of violent and nonviolent criminal 

activity—murder, domestic violence,

sexual assault, child abuse, robbery, elder

abuse, and hate and identity crimes.

Personal crimes can result in physical,

mental, psychological, and financial victimization. Crimes against property (real,

personal, and public, among others) also

can victimize individuals and entire

communities. Victims of property crime

suffer financial losses and emotional distress in addition to losing a sense of 

security and comfort within their communities. Increases in property crime

can compromise a community’s ability

to function and meet members’ needs.

Ultimately, damage from property crime

can destroy a community as frustrated

members abandon it.

Developing the CA

Program

I

n establishing the CA Program,

VS2000 staff decided to use a grant

application process that would ensure that funded projects were community driven. Development was

based on the premise that all neighborhoods and communities have

strengths and assets to build on and

that the community would be more

likely to buy in with a communityled planning team. The goal was to

place funding for the CA Program

in competent community hands.

VS2000 staff sent notices of funding

availability to more than 800 neighborhood groups, homeowners associations,

religious organizations, business-owner

groups, and community leaders. VS2000

staff, community leaders, and agency

representatives hosted a series of local

community television shows to advertise

the availability of funding. Public service

announcements were sent to radio stations, and press releases were sent to

neighborhood and city papers. Information about the funding opportunity

also was presented at numerous community meetings.

Successful applications—

■ Identified communities in which

ideas were generated by the 

community and not by one person

or agency.

■ Reflected diverse representation

from the community.

■ Targeted an underserved or unserved

population.

■ Identified a gap in services for victims of violent crime.

■ Presented a plan for improving 

services.

■ Clearly defined other gaps in services.

■ Created relevant goals and objectives for addressing the gap(s).

Technical Assistance

T

he application process was explained by VS2000 staff to interested community groups at workshops

in various Denver locations, particularly in areas with large underserved or unserved populations. In

addition to background information

on the VS2000 project and the CA

Program, workshops offered instruction and technical assistance on—

■ Application completion.

■ Development of goals and objectives

for the CA Program.

■ Budget development.

■ Awardee’s fiscal responsibilities to

the VS2000 project.

Pilot Project

Selections

VS2000 staff chose threecommunities to pilot the CA

Program: the predominantly Latino

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FS 000272

The Office for Victims of Crime is a 

component of the Office of Justice

Programs, which also includes the 

Bureau of Justice Assistance, Bureau of

Justice Statistics, the National Institute of

Justice, and the Office of Juvenile Justice

and Delinquency Prevention.

community in northwest Denver,

several neighborhoods in northeast

Denver with a mostly AfricanAmerican population, and the local

Muslim community, which is geographically dispersed throughout

Denver.

Neighborhood

Planning Groups

T

he organizations chosen to receive

CA Program grants had all formed

strong neighborhood planning groups

(NPGs) to develop goals and objectives

for the project. NPGs identified the

most compelling victim service needs in

their communities and formulated plans

for addressing those needs. An NPG is

constantly involved in the CA grant because it recruits, hires, and supervises

each CA. CAs also serve on the NPG.

NPG members assist CAs in their work

with victims by meeting regularly to discuss issues and barriers, participating in

strategic planning, and providing guidance. NPG members also attend

VS2000 steering committee meetings

and help with community projects,

cross-training, and outreach efforts.

Conclusion

Acomprehensive OVC bulletin

that addresses all aspects of the

CA Program is in development.

Topics of discussion will include—

■ Gaps in service to underserved and

unserved populations.

■ Development and supervision of a

community outreach program.

■ Lessons learned from implementing,

supervising, and evaluating the 

program.

■ Technology that facilitates provision

of service to underserved and unserved populations and provides an

online case management system. 

For More

Information

F

or more information or technical

assistance regarding the Community Advocate Program, contact

Marti Kovener 

Project Director

Victim Services 2000

303 West Colfax Avenue, Suite 1300

Denver, CO 80204

720–913–9256

Fax: 720–913–9090

Web site: www.vs2000.org

Office for Victims of Crime

U.S. Department of Justice

810 Seventh Street NW., Eighth Floor

Washington, DC 20531

202–307–5983

Fax: 202–514–6383

Web site: www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc

For copies of this fact sheet, other OVC

publications, or information on additional victim-related resources, please

contact:

Office for Victims of Crime Resource 

Center (OVCRC)

Box 6000

Rockville, MD 20849–6000

1–800–627–6872 or 301–519–5500

Web site: www.ncjrs.org

E-mail: askovc@ncjrs.org

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