Sexual Assault Response Teams: Two-Session Virtual Training Series
August 5 & August 12
Session I: Balancing Confidentiality and Collaboration: Case Conversations for Victim/Survivor-Centered SART Response
Session II: Building the Blueprint: Developing SART Protocols for Survivor-Centered Response
Description of Training
The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services is pleased to announce that registration is now open for Sexual Assault Response Teams: Two-Session Virtual Training Series.
Session I: Balancing Confidentiality and Collaboration: Case Conversations for Victim/Survivor-Centered SART Response
Description: Join us for an interactive training focused on the power of case conversations in strengthening collaboration and ensuring victim/survivor-centered responses. In this session, we’ll explore the tangible benefits of structured discussions, providing actionable strategies to navigate challenges and enhance multidisciplinary teamwork. Through practical insights and real-world applications, participants will refine their approach and drive meaningful change within their response efforts. Designed for Sexual Assault Response Team members, this training offers tools to foster consistency, improve coordination, and uphold trauma- informed principles in every interaction.
Date & Time: Tuesday, August 5, 2025, 1:30-3:00 pm ET
Registration: https://mncasa.coalitionmanager.org/eventmanager/trainingevent/details/1205
Session II: Building the Blueprint: Developing SART Protocols for Survivor-Centered Response
Description: Join us for an engaging and practical training designed to deepen your understanding of systems change and its role in protocol development. This session will explore why victim/survivor-centered protocols are essential, highlight the key components that make them effective, and guide you in creating a structured implementation plan for long-term impact. Whether your Sexual Assault Response Team is refining existing protocols or starting from scratch, this training will provide the insights and tools needed to confidently navigate the development process.
Date & Time: Tuesday, August 12, 2025, 1:30-3:00 pm ET
Registration: https://mncasa.coalitionmanager.org/eventmanager/trainingevent/details/1206
Who should attend?
Prosecutors, Victim Advocates, Law Enforcement, Forensic Nurses and anyone else who coordinates or serves on a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) in Virginia.
Please note that the DCJS registration system does not have the capacity to sort eligible from ineligible registrants. Therefore, anyone who registers will receive a confirmation. The DCJS assigned course director will review the roster and will cancel any ineligible registrants. Any registrants not accepted will be notified via the email address provided in the registration system.
Certificates of attendance can be accessed after the participant completes a short training evaluation after each session.
Participant Registration and Cost: Preregistration is required. There is no cost to register.
Location: Virtual
Presenters:
Heather Blanton is the National Sexual Assault Response Team Program Coordinator with the Sexual Violence Justice Institute at the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault. She has been working with victims/survivors of domestic and sexual violence and allied professionals in the field for more than 16 years. Prior to this role, Heather worked with the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence to provide training and technical assistance to community-based advocates and allied professionals on a variety of topics including officer-perpetrated domestic and sexual violence, court advocacy, and protection orders. In addition, Heather worked on the OVW Improving Criminal Justice Response Grant to develop a toolkit for Kansas around implementing lethality assessments and high-risk teams into communities.
Madeline Gonser is the National Sexual Assault Response Team Program Coordinator with the Sexual Violence Justice Institute at the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault. In her previous role, Madeline served as the Protection Order Project Coordinator for the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence. Madeline worked to enhance the statewide protection order process through training programs, technical assistance, stakeholder collaboration, and policy development relating to issues of protection orders in cases involving domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking. Madeline served on the Access to Justice Committee which made recommendations to the Kansas Supreme Court on matters such as reducing barriers to accessing justice faced by survivors and self represented litigants navigating the legal system.
Course Director:
Jennifer Kline, ICJR Grant Program Coordinator
Victims Services
Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services
(804) 225-3456
Jennifer.Kline@DCJS.Virginia.gov