BJA is seeking peer reviewers to review and score grant applications for its solicitations. Those who are interested should submit an up-to-date resume or curriculum vitae to Byrne.Discretionary@usdoj.gov. (BJA)

Clea Koff, author of "The Bone Woman: A Forensic Anthropologist's Search for Truth in the Graves of Rwanda, Bosnia, Croatia, and Kosovo," will be the keynote speaker at The NIJ Conference 2009. She will tell her riveting, intimate story of the missions she undertook on behalf of the United Nations. (NIJ)

Application deadline: April 1, 2009
OVC is accepting applications for State Victim Assistance Academy(SVAA) grants to develop SVAAs in states where one does not exist. Up to six first-year awards of $35,000 are available for this 3-year project. This initiative focuses on developing comprehensive, academically based education and training for victim assistance professionals who work with crime victims. (OVC)

Application deadline: May 18, 2009
BJA is seeking applicants for the Recovery Act: Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Formula Program: Local Solicitation. Funding will be awarded to eligible units of local government and federally recognized Indian tribes in their efforts to combat violence against women, improve the functioning of the criminal justice system, and support youth mentoring, among other activities. (BJA)

Application deadline: April 6, 2009
OVC is seeking applications for the Training and Technical Assistance for Children's Justice Act (CJA) Partnerships for Indian Grant Program. This grant offers $500,000 to a nonprofit organization that can provide culturally relevant hands-on training and technical assistance to American Indian and Alaska Native grantees. (OVC)

Application deadline: April 20, 2009
BJA is accepting applications for the Second Chance Act Prisoner Reentry Initiative grant. This program is designed to deliver effective programs and services to offenders to ensure successful transition back into communities. (BJA)

Application deadline: April 9, 2009
BJA is requesting applications for the Recovery Act: Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Formula Program: State Solicitation. Applicants are limited to states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa. Funding may be used to fight Internet crimes against children and assist victims of crime, among other activities. (BJA)

Application deadline: April 6, 2009
OVC will award up to $2.5 million to federally recognized tribes and nonprofit tribal organizations through the Children's Justice Act (CJA) Partnerships for Indian Communities Grant Program. This funding will help American Indian and Alaska Native communities improve the overall handling of child abuse cases. (OVC)

Application deadline: March 26, 2009
OVC is seeking applications for the Recovery Act - National Field-Generated Training, Technical Assistance, and Demonstration Projects (NFG) solicitation. Through Recovery Act - NFG, OVC will make awards ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 to support training, technical assistance, and demonstration projects. Please see the OVC Recovery Act Web page for updates to help you apply for and administer your grant. (OVC)

Application deadline: April 17, 2009
Funding is available for the Convicted Offender and/or Arrestee DNA Backlog Reduction Program. This program offers an opportunity for states with existing laboratories that conduct analyses of convicted offender and/or arrestee DNA samples to reduce their backlog of such samples through in-house DNA analysis or by sending samples to accredited fee-for-service laboratories for DNA analysis. (NIJ)

Application deadline: April 20, 2009
BJA has released the FY 2009 Second Chance Act National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center grant announcement. Applicants are limited to national nonprofit organizations that provide technical assistance and training to, and have special expertise and broad, national-level experience in, offender reentry programs, training, and research. (BJA)

The current issue of the quarterly "Geography and Public Safety" (NCJ 225752, 20 pp.) newsletter is now available. This issue examines how police can use geographic information systems and statistical analysis to create police districts that balance officer workloads and allocate resources more effectively. Other articles discuss tactical deployment, redistricting, and NIJ's Geography and Crime Project. (NIJ and COPS)

"State and Local Law Enforcement Training Academies, 2006" (NCJ 222987, 12 pp.) presents findings from the 2006 BJS Census of Law Enforcement Training Academies, updating the results of the initial census conducted in 2002. A total of 648 academies were providing basic training to entry-level recruits at yearend 2006. (BJS)

The March issue of "Community Policing Dispatch" features an overview of the COPS Hiring Recovery Program. Other articles discuss a California police department's approach to its community's foreclosure crisis, the role of mediation in police-citizen disputes, and the COPS Office Child Sexual Predator Program. (COPS)

"Prison Staffing Analysis: A Training Manual With Staffing Considerations for Special Populations " (ACCN 022667, 233 pp.) provides guidance that will enable an agency staffing administrator to set up a staffing analysis unit and produce a staffing analysis report for an entire agency. It also addresses special considerations in the staffing of facilities for women and medical and mental health units. (NIC)

On March 18, 2009, in commemoration of National Youth Violence Prevention Week, OVC and OJJDP will host an OVC Web Forum Guest Host Session on best practices for providing services to students who have been victims of bullying. Join Dr. Susan Limber and Dr. Patricia Agatston, coauthors of "Cyberbullying: Bullying in the Digital Age," at 2 p.m. ET for the live discussion. (OVC)

Training sessions and frequently asked questions from the Drug Free Communities (DFC) Support Program FY 2009 Grant Application Workshops are now available for download. These materials will help applicants respond to the FY 2009 Drug Free Communities Support Program Request for Applications. (ONDCP)

The DiscussMeth Web Forum was created as a place for sharing ideas, asking questions, and helping create a shared sense of mission in the fight against meth. Users can register online to read or join in discussions regarding treatment or prevention of meth abuse, or enforcement of meth laws. (ONDCP)

Register for OVC's upcoming training workshops, including Sexual Assault Advocate/Counselor Training, April 14-15, 2009, in Austin, Texas, and Curriculum Design for Victim Service Providers, May 5-6, 2009, in Portland, Oregon. To view course descriptions and learning objectives or to register, visit the OVC TTAC Web site. (OVC)