National Resource Center on Domestic Violence

Since 1993, the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV) has received core funding to operate the NRCDV from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, with supplemental funds from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to support VAWnet, a national online resource center, and other private and public grants. The NRCDV employs a multidisciplinary staff and supports a wide range of projects to address the complex challenges domestic violence poses to families, institutions, communities, and governments. The NRCDV’s technical assistance and training not only responds to requests from the field, but also anticipates needs for information and guidance around emerging policy and practice issues. The NRCDV develops and disseminates comprehensive and specialized information packets that address a range of domestic violence issues, and publishes related innovative intervention and model prevention practices, protocols and policies. In 1995, the NRCDV created VAWnet, a comprehensive and easily accessible collection of full-text, searchable electronic materials and resources on domestic violence, sexual violence and related issues. The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) serves as the key collaborative partner for this project. VAWnet currently receives over 3,000 visitors per day and these visitors download over 1,900 files a day. A significant number of the most frequently downloaded documents are those produced by NRCDV and NSVRC staff and consultants. The NRCDV utilizes three primary strategies in its work: technical assistance and training, development of resource materials, and special projects.