Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) Wednesday announced that the US Department of Justice is awarding a $1.8 million grant to the Vermont-based National Center for Campus Public Safety to expand services and launch new initiatives related to safety on university and college campuses across the country. The funding is in addition to an earlier DOJ grant of $2.3 million that Leahy announced last year for the center, which is based in Burlington, and is partnered with the University of Vermont.
Leahy, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, was the lead author and sponsor of the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. The legislation included new requirements for colleges and universities to prevent sexual assault and expand resources for students who become victims.
“The work being done at the National Center for Campus Public Safety is crucial, and it will result in safer campuses across the nation,” Leahy said. “I am proud of the work that the center is on a national level, right from their home base in Vermont.”
The grant has been awarded to Vermont-based Margolis Healy & Associates LLC and will be used to launch a series of new initiatives. They include roundtable discussions with college presidents across the country to address gender and sexual violence, and developing a training curriculum to address sexual assaults on campuses. The grant also will assist the VTV Family Foundation and the Center and the Bureau of Justice Assistance in engaging the stakeholders in campus public safety.
Former UVM Police Chief Gary Margolis, Margolis Healy’s managing partner, “We are excited to receive these additional resources in support of the National Center’s efforts to address the safety and security of our nation’s universities and colleges.”
Margolis Healy & Associates LLC was established in 2008 by Margolis and former Director of Public Safety at Princeton University Steven J Healy, each with more than 15 years of experience in providing consulting services to clients in public and private education. Last year DOJ awarded Margolis Healy $2.3 million to establish the Center in collaboration with UVM to serve the safety and security needs of higher education campuses throughout the nation.
Source: WASHINGTON (WEDNESDAY, Sept. 10, 2014) – Leahy's office