Welcome to the Michigan Victim Advocacy Network’s Navigation Guide. MiVAN.org is an interactive website that informs, educates, and connects victim advocates. The MiVAN website includes many different resources and possibilities.

In this guide, you will find a complete breakdown of the MiVAN website. As the website grows, this document will be updated to reflect any new changes.

Safety Banner

The MiVAN team acknowledges that based on our name, victims of crime may stumble on the website. We have included a dark green safety alert banner at the top of the page that serves to direct victims of crime to Michigan and National resources. If this banner does not apply to you, it can be removed by clicking the exit button.

If the banner does apply to you, once selected, you will be directed to the resources page for victims of crime.

Login and Search

In the top right of the website, you will find a login and search option. Here you can login to an existing account or create a new account. We will touch on how to manage your profile in greater detail later in this manual.

The search allows you to navigate the website using keywords. Click on the search icon and you will be prompted to type in your search.

Mission statement

MiVAN’s mission statement can be found on the home page.

This page has three sub-tabs:

Who We Are

This section highlights the names and roles of the MiVAN team. As the MiVAN team continues to expand or change this page will be updated accordingly.

What We Do

This section explains the origins of the MiVAN project, what it entails, and will include the data and results from the advocate surveys.

Contact Us

Clicking this tab will take you to a contact form. Please select your reason for contacting us, and fill out this form. Your message will be sent directly to the MiVAN Team and we will get back to you with a timely response.

Resource Library

The Resource Library page includes MiVAN’s newest resources and the entire searchable history of MiVAN resources. Clicking on this page will bring you to a page full of resources that aids to address and help with the challenges and wellbeing of advocates.

Resource sub-pages that focus on a specific topic include:

• Trauma-Informed Practices
• Culturally Responsive Resources
• Advocate Resiliency

This tab is only available to users with registered and approved MiVAN accounts.

There are four functions on the My Profile page:

About: In your Profile, you are able to see the information you have inputted on the MiVAN website. To the left is a record of the courses you are enrolled in and how many CEUs you have earned. Use the buttons on the row below to edit your information: 

• To edit your profile information, click the “Edit Profile” button.
• To change your password, click the “Change Password” button.

Courses: You can view and access all of the courses in which you are Enrolled.

• Click the “See More” button under each course to view the training’s page.

Transcript: Your student transcript displays a list of all courses you have completed on MiVAN and the date they were completed. This section has two buttons:

• “Download Transcript”
• “Self Report a Course” will take you to the self-report form. Here you can input a course taken outside of MiVAN, which will then be reviewed by the MiVAN Staff. MiVAN trainings do not need to be reported.

Certificates: You can easily view and print every CE earned on MiVAN.

This tab is only available to users with registered and approved MiVAN accounts.

On this page, you can find and enroll in Online Courses, in-person trainings and events in which MiVAN is hosting or participating. For an overview of your enrolled courses, trainings, and events please visit the My Dashboard page.  

Webinars

If you are a VOCA funded employee, DVS will be posting mandated webinars on the MiVAN Trainings Tab. These webinars include topics such as sexual assault, confidentiality, and other relevant subject matters.

Self-Reporting

If there are advocacy trainings you attended outside of MiVAN you may request to self-report these trainings. You may do this using our Self-Reporting Form, which can be found on your “Profile” section. You will be asked to fill out this form with details of the training, and upload proof of your attendance. If accepted, the approved training will be added to your MiVAN transcript. MiVAN’s trainings will appear on your transcript automatically and will not be accepted as self-reported courses.

Transcripts

As you complete trainings on the Trainings section of the website, these completed trainings will be added to your transcript. To monitor your completion, you can view this transcript at any time on your Profile or by clicking the “My Transcript” link on the right-hand side of most pages.  Your self-reported trainings will also appear here.

Sign Up to Join the Network

You will see a large “Sign Up to Join the Network” button. Clicking this will bring you to directly to the Registration page for MiVAN.org. Creating a profile will allow you to network with other advocates and take online courses.

Shortcut Photos

On every page there are three photos: News, Resources, and Contact Us.

• News: Clicking the news photo will take you to the Announcements and News page.
• Resources: Clicking the resources photo will take you directly to the “Resource Home” page.
• Contact Us: Clicking the contact us photo will take you to a contact form. Fill out this form and your message will be sent to the MiVAN Team. We will get back to you with a timely response.