Rebuilding Hope! Sexual Assault Center is seeking to hire a passionate and capable individual to serve as a Community Advocate.

Rebuilding Hope’s mission is to offer support toward healing through advocacy and therapy for those affected by sexual assault and abuse. Through education and collaboration, Rebuilding Hope improves the community’s response to sexual assault and abuse victims and challenges the behaviors and beliefs that promote sexual violence.

We are seeking candidates for this position who are passionate about enacting positive social change towards reducing instances of sexual violence in our community and who have the capacity to serve survivors seeking support following sexual assault or abuse.

Rebuilding Hope! is committed to developing a team of staff who reflect the diverse demography of our community and who represent the populations who are disproportionately impacted by violence. We strongly encourage members of our Black, 2SLGBTQIA , culturally diverse, and differently-abled communities to apply. 

Nature of Work

This is a full-time position involving extensive contact with sexual assault victims, their families, and friends, primarily focused on but not limited to Pierce County. The employee in this position has the ability to exercise independent initiative and judgment, subject to the policies and procedures of the agency and the direction of the Advocacy Department Manager. This work involves providing remote and in-person direct advocacy and support services to primary and secondary victims of sexual assault. This is a non-exempt position.

Primary Objective: Directly provide in-person direct service advocacy to include general, medical, legal, information/referral, and crisis intervention services primarily in Pierce County (with medical responses in Kitsap County) to primary and secondary victims of sexual assault and abuse. This position will also provide community outreach as a member of the Rebuilding Hope Advocacy Department. Responsibilities of this Position are to be facilitated under the direction of the Advocacy Department Manager and Advocacy Supervisor, and in the absence of Advocacy Leaders, the Deputy Director, or other designee.

Responsible to: Advocacy Department Manager and Advocacy Supervisor 

Advocacy Responsibilities:

Advocacy services will focus primarily on, but are not limited to, Pierce County residents (with medical advocacy responses in Kitsap County). Job duties will include:

• Accepting external and internal referrals to provide core sexual assault advocacy services (crisis intervention, information/referral, general, medical, and legal advocacy) to primary and secondary victims of sexual assault and abuse.
• Coordinating sexual assault advocacy services with community professionals in accordance with client confidentiality policies, as needed;
• Following up with clients on a case-by-case basis as scheduled;
• Providing referrals for unique needs not met by family including but not limited to Safety Planning, Housing, Mental Health, Legal, Clothing, and/or Transportation;
• Completing all paperwork and required data reporting as assigned in a timely, thorough, and accurate manner;
• Assisting in communicating appropriate referrals to the STEP advocate(s) and Therapy Programs;
• Working collaboratively with the Client Access Specialist and other agency staff to provide support to clients and programs;
• Meeting victims at all major Kitsap and Pierce hospitals (or other approved facilities) to provide support and assistance during forensic rape exams and law enforcement interviews;
• Assisting with covering the DOC Sexual Assault Support & Information hotline during business days and hours.
• Assisting Pierce County residents in filing for civil orders of protection (remote or in-person) and providing any necessary follow-up to the courthouse and client;
• Responding and following up with clients in a timely manner;
• Providing over-the-phone and in-person advocacy services to clients at correctional facilities and work release programs in Pierce County;
• Providing in-person advocacy services to clients referred by prosecuting attorneys;
• Notifying the Advocacy Department Manager and/or chain of support when a conflict of interest arises in responding to a client call or in-person response; and 
• Assisting with 24/7 hotline coverage to include evening, overnight, and/or weekend shifts with the opportunity to flex out that time within the pay period. 

Leadership

Job duties will include:

• Collaborating with and supporting other advocacy programs or Rebuilding Hope staff members when requested and approved;

• Assisting in attending community awareness events when scheduled, offering the public information regarding agency history and available services;

• Assisting the Advocacy Department in networking and outreach to external agencies and community professionals in Pierce County.
• Assisting Advocacy Department in training new volunteer/intern advocates during Advocate Core, ongoing training, and monthly advocacy meetings/trainings. 
• Providing any necessary internal programmatic support. 
• Assisting with the ongoing development of this position.

Meeting and Training Requirements

• Complete 30 hours of sexual assault training (provided by Rebuilding Hope! or other approved Advocacy Core training). 
• Must maintain at least 12 hours of ongoing training annually that is approved by the Advocacy Department Manager.
• Attend monthly advocacy meetings and trainings with advocacy staff.
• Attend bi-weekly Rebuilding Hope staff meetings and additional Rebuilding Hope staff requirements to include staff retreats or internal staff training requirements.
• Commit to an individual training and development plan with your supervisor that centers on cultural sensitivity, community diversity, equity, access, and inclusion concepts and practices relevant to your position and your representation of Rebuilding Hope to the community and clients we serve.

Administrative

• Uphold all agency and Departmental Policies to include the Confidentiality Policy and Mandatory Reporting Policy.
• Complete all client paperwork, including ROIs, consent forms, and database entries, in a timely, thorough, and accurate manner.
• Submit all timesheets, and requests for reimbursements to the Advocacy Department Manager in accordance with the predetermined deadlines/due dates.
• Respond in a timely manner to all program staff requests when scheduled for regular work hours.

Distinguishing Characteristics

The Community Advocate must demonstrate competency in the following areas: a working knowledge of the issues involved in sexual violence and how individuals recover from sexual assault; strong communication and listening skills; ability to work with diverse groups; and commitment to SACPC goals and victim empowerment. The Community Advocate also must demonstrate leadership skills and the ability to work independently to work with long and short-term clients.

Qualifications

The Community Advocate must have extensive working knowledge and awareness of the basic issues involved in sexual violence, child sexual abuse, and trauma as well as how to work with multidisciplinary professionals relevant to child abuse intervention and investigations. This employee must demonstrate an effective ability to engage with clients, Rebuilding Hope staff, and community professionals. Excellent oral and written skills are required. Prior experience working with children in a professional setting is preferred. Strong knowledge and experience working with Microsoft Office and Google Drive/Apps is also preferred.

The desired experience and training for the Community Advocate includes a bachelor’s degree in Human Services (or equivalent), plus at least one year of experience in providing advocacy or direct human services; or a combination of four years of relevant education, training, and experience to include direct client or human services.

Transportation: The advocate must have their own means of transportation in order to attend County-wide and cross-county meetings and/or outreach and training activities; mileage is reimbursed for this position. 

Position Details:

This is a full-time, 40-hours-a-week, non-exempt position. This position pays $26.50-$30.00/hour depending on qualifications, experience, and longevity. We are an equal opportunity employer. Candidates must be able to pass a fingerprint background check that covers Washington state and national jurisdictions. Rebuilding Hope offers an excellent benefits package that this position is eligible for. This position will close on March 8th, 2024.