College partner Roper Academy celebrates a decade of advocacy training.

Celebrating 10 years of teaching advocacy for crime victims.

On Friday, April 19, as the Roper Victim Assistance Academy of Maryland graduates its class of 2013, it celebrated a decade of teaching victimology, victim's rights and services, and victim advocacy through an intensive, 40-hour education program.

Led and coordinated by School of Criminal Justice faculty and staff and in partnership with the College of Public Affairs, the award-winning academy was created along with others across the country with the help of federal funding. Many such programs disappeared when that funding dried up, but Maryland has created a strong, ongoing academy funded through a regular line in the state budget.

The academy seeks to provide a broad spectrum of basic advocacy training in an effort to standardize that training for crime victim service providers in Maryland, thereby expanding and enhancing the level of professionalism within the victim services field. In so doing, the academy strives to increase participants' knowledge of national, state and local resources and to provide an opportunity to network with other victim service providers. In addition to its annual academy, the organization sponsors advanced trainings for victim service professionals and victim advocates and provides additional networking opportunities through its alumni association.

Roper Victim Assistance Academy of Maryland staff include:

• Deborah Bradley
• Linda Fair
• Heather Pfeifer
• Debra Stanley
• Dave Thomas
• Elaine Witman.