Lebanon — WISE has been chosen by the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women to take part in the national Advocacy Learning Center.

The 18-month program is designed to strengthen how advocacy programs engage with survivors, address institutional responses to violence against women and involve the community in ending violence, WISE said in a news release. Participants attend three events in person and complete numerous distance learning activities.

Sending a team to participate in the program “deepens WISE’s ability to have greater impact in the Upper Valley to support survivors of violence and engage the community in ending gender-based violence,” said Peggy O’Neil, WISE’s executive director.

The WISE employees taking part include Kate Rohdenburg, program director; Chelsea Williams, training coordinator; and Delaney Anderson, campus advocate.

The Lebanon-based nonprofit works one-on-one with about 1,100 people in crisis every year, and also partners with a number of community organizations, Abby Tassel, WISE’s assistant director, said in a telephone interview.

“It’s incredibly busy,” said Tassel, who also is a faculty member with the Advocacy Learning Center. WISE’s having been chosen to participate in the program offers “a great opportunity to … take a step back from crisis mode and really think about how we can be most effective.”

WISE is among 15 agencies and programs taking part in the class.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, 1 in 5 women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime, and one in three women will be a victim of domestic violence.

— Staff report