Engaging Men Program Grantees Come Together in D.C.

Futures Without Violence is continuing our partnership with the Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) as the lead technical assistance provider for the Engaging Men Grant Program – an exciting federal program focusing on engaging men to prevent violence against women and girls. In March 2013 we held two successful meetings with grantees of the program in Washington DC.

Since their orientation in August 2011, the inaugural class of Engaging Men Program grantees have been doing groundbreaking work in communities across the country utilizing public education campaigns and community organizing strategies to engage men in the prevention of violence against women. Last week, we celebrated their innovative work in a two-day Institute which provided grantees with an opportunity to learn from each other and share their wisdom with a new class of Engaging Men Program grantees, just announced Fall 2012.

As the first class of grantees looks forward to a new chapter in their work to engage men, the newly announced grantees are just beginning and they got off to a great start with their orientation last week. The new grantees heard from leaders in the field such as Gary Barker of Instituto Promundo and Annie Lyles of the Prevention Institute, in addition to learning from the challenges and successes shared by the previous class of Engaging Men Program grantees.

Along with performances by Men Can Stop Rape’s MOST Club participants and Add Verb Production’s You The Man play, the Engaging Men Program Institute and New Grantee Orientation meetings were truly engaging events which will continue to inform the practice of Engaging Men Program grantees moving forward.