SART Foundations: Defining the Style of SART

In working in and around Sexual Assault Response Teams, I find that teams with different styles and focuses all get called the same thing. In doing technical assistance, I found so many points of confusion before one of us would realize the other didn’t mean quite the same thing when they said, “SART.” One of the most basic difference I found was in what I call the “style of the SART.” There are two major types of SARTs that I have found in this work. Here is a handy chart to distinguish them!

This difference is crucial, because it shapes who, what, and how you do your work as a team. Choosing which style of SART is best for your community can be a really complex task, however, SVJI is happy to provide technical assistance as you work through these questions and decision points. Each team style has strengths and each has drawbacks. What matters most is that you choose the type of SART based on what the community can support and where you want to go. SARTs can shift type—it’s not set in stone—but it’s important to be intentional in these types of decisions!

Have you had experience with this? Do you have questions or thoughts to share? Leave them in the comments!