Responding to National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week, OVC will sponsor an OVC Web Forum Guest Host Session on February 27, 2008, at 2 p.m. ET. Join Director Mitru Ciarlante, National Center for Victims of Crime's Teen Victim Initiative, and Director Barri Rosenbluth, SafePlace's Expect Respect Program, to discuss serving teen victims of dating violence. (OVC)

ONDCP has launched a new effort to educate parents about the risks of teen prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse via national newspaper, magazine, and television ads. A component of the campaign includes "Teen Prescription Drug Abuse: An Emerging Threat," a toolkit created to assist communities in educating their teens. (ONDCP)

Application deadlines: February 21, 2008, for applications under "National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims" and May 29, 2008, for all others
The FY 2008 National Field-Generated Training, Technical Assistance, and Demonstration Projects grant offers awards of $50,000 to $500,000 to support the development of national-scope training, technical assistance, and demonstration project initiatives. All initiatives must focus on improving the capacity of victim service providers and allied practitioners to advance rights and services to crime victims. (OVC)

Check the OVW Web site for current funding opportunities. New grant solicitations have been added recently. For more information, visit the OVW Web site. (OVW)

Application deadline: April 4, 2008
The Criminal Justice Technology Evaluation grant seeks evaluations of technologies designed to prevent and reduce crime and to improve the functioning of the criminal justice system. Evaluations should focus on fully functional and readily applicable technologies. Submissions focusing on the measurable reduction of crime will receive priority consideration. (NIJ)

The "Recruitment, Hiring, and Retention Resources for Law Enforcement CD-ROM" (NCJ 221557) will assist chiefs, sheriffs, and other executives tasked with finding and retaining talented police officers. This resource contains electronic publications produced by COPS and various other agencies. Topics covered are recruitment and hiring, retention and training, ethics and integrity, early intervention, and managing stress. (COPS)

"Delinquency Cases in Juvenile Courts, 2004" (FS 200801, 2 pp.) provides statistics on delinquency cases in U.S. juvenile courts between 1995 and 2004. "Petitioned Status Offense Cases in Juvenile Courts, 2004" (FS 200802, 2 pp.) reports on status offense cases processed in juvenile courts between 1995 and 2004. "Drug Offense Cases in Juvenile Courts, 1985--2004" (FS 200803, 2 pp.) offers data on drug offense cases handled in juvenile courts between 1985 and 2004. (OJJDP)

The February 2008 Community Policing Dispatch features articles about the importance of community partnerships as an effective homeland security approach, the 2007 Criminal Intelligence Sharing Summit, and the FY 2008 COPS Office budget. This monthly electronic newsletter educates readers about criminal justice issues affecting the implementation of community policing. (COPS)

"Improving Responses to People with Mental Illnesses: The Essential Elements of a Mental Health Court" (NCJ 221523, 24 pp.) describes 10 essential elements of mental health court design and implementation. Each section describes why the element is important and how courts can adhere to it. (BJA)

OVC invites you to plan your observance for National Crime Victims' Rights Week (NCVRW), April 13-19, 2008. The online NCVRW Resource Guide is now available. Developed to help communities promote awareness of victim issues, this online guide includes camera-ready art files, public awareness posters, the 2008 theme DVD, and more. (OVC)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and partners have issued the National Action Agenda for Public Health Legal Preparedness as a resource that public health officials, policymakers, and partners can use to assess and improve their jurisdictions’ legal preparedness for public health emergencies. (BJA)

The deadline for presentations and workshops has been extended to February 18, 2008, for the Tenth Crime Mapping Research Conference, to be held September 17-20, 2008, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Presentations and workshops will highlight principles of geography in research findings, applications in practice, technology demonstration, and policy results in solving crime and public safety problems. (NIJ)

OJJDP and NIC's Juvenile Justice Leadership Development Training Program will be held May 13-23, 2008, in Aurora, Colorado. Local, state, and federal juvenile justice organizations and professionals are encouraged to attend. Applications are due February 20, 2008. (NIC)

ONDCP will host a Student Drug Testing Summit for charter schools on February 19, 2008, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Attendees will learn about random student drug testing and will be encouraged to promote this drug prevention strategy at the local level. Topics will include types of testing available, legal issues, program development, and student assistance programs. (ONDCP)

Register now for OVC's upcoming training workshops, including Responding to School Violence, March 11-12, 2008, in Portland, Oregon, and Sexual Assault Advocate/Counselor Training, April 29-30, 2008, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. To view course descriptions, learning objectives, or to register, visit the OVC TTAC Web site. (OVC)

The 2008 National Victim Assistance Academy will be held May 4-9, 2008, in St. Louis, Missouri. Visit OVC's Training Center for more information and to be added to the mailing list. (OVC)