OVW funds two different types of Supervised Visitation Program grantees -Development and Continuation:

Development Grantees – These grantees are communities with established visitation centers seeking to incorporate a Supervised Visitation  Program component into their services or communities seeking to establish a new visitation and exchange center.  These grantees work with OVW and Supervised Visitation Program Technical Assistance providers to establish the groundwork for developing a visitation and exchange center.  The development grant is broken down into two phases, planning and implementation.

Development Grantee Phases

Planning Phase

The planning phase may be for up to 18 months, depending on the length of time it takes the grantee to successfully complete this phase.  The planning phase may include, but is not limited to:

• Conducting a community needs assessment;
• Funding a project coordinator;
• Coordinating and conducting planning meetings;
• Establishing an advisory/consulting committee; and
• Developing visitation center policies and protocols.

Implementation Phase

Once Planning Grantees successfully complete the planning phase, they will begin implementing supervised visitation and exchange services over the remainder of the project period.  The grantee continues to work with OVW and OVW Technical Assistance providers to implement their Supervised Visitation project.

Continuation Grantees

Current Supervised Visitaton Program grantees are eligible to apply for supplemental funds to continue and/or enhance their exisiting programs.  Multi-jursidictional and state inititatives must meet statutory and program requirements for each jurisdicition involved in this project.  For FY 2007, the Supervised Visitation Program offered two different funding options for current grantees: (1) the standard two-year project; or (2) the optional five-year project.

Both planning grantees and implementation grantees must demonstrate expertise in the area of family violence, including the areas of domestic violence or sexual assault.  Supervised visitation programs provide an opportunity for communities to support the supervised visitation and safe exchange of children, by and between custodial and non-custodial parents, in situations involving domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, dating violence, or stalking while recognizing the importance of holding offenders accountable for their actions. 

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