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The Rape Recovery Center has appointed a new executive director.
Holly Mullen, a former editor and columnist for The Salt Lake Tribune, officially takes the helm of the Salt Lake City-based nonprofit after serving as its interim director for six months.
"One in three women in Utah will be affected by some form of sexual violence in her lifetime," Mullen said. "Nationally, it's about one in five."
Mullen said her most immediate goal for the center is to build on its team of victim advocates who go to hospitals whenever a rape is reported. The group staffs shifts 24 hours a day 365 days a year and can spend up to 10 hours on a single rape investigation.
"The numbers go way up in summertime for rape and sexual assault," Mullen said.
Mullen said she also hopes to expand community outreach in schools and among Spanish-speakers.
On the legislative front, Mullen said her top priority is reauthorization of the federal Violence Against Women Act; federal grants account for at least 60 percent of the center's funding, she said.
Sandy Nelson, chairwoman of the center's board of directors, said Mullen was selected "for her administrative and fundraising abilities, as well as her communication skills and rapport with the agency's clients, staff and volunteers."
As interim director, Mullen helped secure $150,000 in the state budget for victim services. She previously served on the center's board of directors. She worked briefly for the state House Democratic Caucus and was editor of City Weekly. Her journalism career spanned 30 years.