On this page:

About the Training • Registration • Direct Service Options • Eligibility • FAQ

About the Certification Training

Twice a year, starting in April and October, Walnut Avenue offers the certification training required by California law to provide direct service to survivors of domestic violence. The training addresses subjects such as:

• The definition, manifestations, and dynamics of domestic violence

• The personal, interpersonal, social, cultural, and political barriers facing survivors of domestic violence from an intersectional perspective

• How and why people choose to cause harm

• The impact of domestic violence on children and youth

• How culture, society, and communities shape gender-based violence

• Crisis intervention and peer support skills

• Family law restraining orders and alternative forms of justice

Content and trigger warnings: this training addresses different types of abuse and how they intersect with racism, transphobia, ableism, police and state violence, and other aspects of kyriarchy. Mental illness, substance misuse, and the impact of trauma, including its impact on children, are also addressed.

If this certification training doesn’t fit what you’re looking for, check out our education page for info on other workshops and event options!

Eligibility for Participation in the Training

To avoid conflict of interest, people who have used Walnut Avenue’s services on their own behalf must wait at least two years to pass since their last date of receiving a service before they may participate in the training.

People who also wish to volunteer in direct service must, in addition to completing the training, also meet the basic eligibility requirements for volunteering, which are listed on the general volunteering page.

To register, you must attend a volunteer orientation prior to the start of the training you wish to participate in. You will be provided with the link to register yourself for the training after completing an orientation. You cannot register during the training itself. Registration for each training closes two weeks prior to the first date of training.

Want to receive updates and reminders about the training? Subscribe to our monthly volunteer newsletter!

Options for Direct Service

The training prepares you for a weekly shift on our domestic violence hotline and also opens up additional opportunities in other areas of advocacy:

• Teen Group: facilitating our youth group for at-risk teens

• Youth workshop facilitator: visit middle school and high school classrooms to facilitate group discussions and workshops on subjects related to teen dating violence, consent, and healthy relationships

• Community engagement: prevention education, social media, awareness month campaigns, networking, research, and more!

• Space for Change transformative justice program advocate: participating as a member of the support circle for a survivor or for someone who’s caused harm

• Legal advocacy: attend court in person once a week to provide legal support about family law restraining orders to survivors of elder abuse and domestic violence

Other Walnut Avenue internships which require this training: housing, social media, youth. You may view the summary of all our volunteer positions here.

Please note that COVID may temporarily but indefinitely disrupt or alter some of these volunteering options.

Eligibility for Volunteer Advocacy

To be a volunteer advocate with Walnut Avenue, a person must meet the general eligibility requirements for volunteering and complete the certification training.

Professional Development

If you’re interested in the training but not to become a volunteer advocate, you may still participate! To become certified as an advocate under California state law, however, you must still fulfill all the same certification requirements as someone who’s planning to volunteer with us (minus a background check).

If that doesn’t work for you, you can alternatively:

• Check out our EventBrite for upcoming webinars and follow us to get notified of new classes**

• Visit our education page to see what else we offer

• Contact the community engagement coordinator to discuss the possibility of a domestic violence training customized for your own organization

**Our classes currently do not offer CEUs. A letter of participation can be provided upon request.

FAQ about Becoming an Advocate

“I don’t have prior experience in any kind of counseling or emotional support roles.”

That’s okay! No prior experience is necessary. We spend a lot of time during the 40+ hours of training practicing peer support skills like active listening, the difference between emotional validation and unhelpful platitudes, and setting healthy, appropriate boundaries as needed. Peer counseling is non-clinical support, and our focus as advocates is always on practical safety concerns rather than therapeutic service.

We have advocates from all walks of life, including STEM fields, and advocates of all kinds of personalities, neurodivergences, and other ways of existing in the world.

“What if I’m not a ‘people person’?”

That depends on what you mean. Advocates are expected to act with compassion as well as professionalism, and we practice what that looks like during the training. What makes an advocate effective is less about innate personality and much more about the application of appropriate skills, knowledge, and attitude when interacting with someone who’s experienced harm.

“I’m a survivor of domestic violence. Can I still be an advocate?”

Absolutely! Many of our own staff and past/current volunteers get into this work because they have a personal investment, in one way or another, in seeing things change for the better around domestic violence.

However, it’s important to know that being a survivor comes with its own benefits and also risks. Survivors often understand the perspective of other survivors in a way that comes from a shared experience, but it also comes with a higher risk of “vicarious trauma” - that is, being re-traumatized from witnessing another person’s pain.

If you’re a survivor, we strongly recommend that you wait until at least a few years have passed since your own experience of domestic violence and that you have some personal support, such as a counselor or loved ones you trust, in place before trying to support other survivors.

“I’m not a cis woman. Can I still be an advocate?”

Yes! Domestic violence impacts people of all genders.

“I’m not planning to be a therapist or social worker. How is this training still relevant to me?”

The CDC estimates that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men in the general US population experience physical abuse, rape, or stalking from an intimate partner - and that’s not even including verbal, financial, spiritual, privileged, and other forms of abuse. Statistically speaking, every person knows multiple survivors of domestic violence in their personal life, whether or not those survivors have chosen to share about their experience.

Domestic violence can come up in any workplace, classroom, social gathering, or personal space. Even if you aren’t planning to go into clinical or social work, this training can still prepare you to be a better, safer support person for your loved ones…and also help you recognize red flags in your own relationships.

This is why Walnut Avenue is doing its best to lower as many barriers as possible, such as eliminating materials fees and even some of the volunteering requirements which are normally attached to this kind of intensive training. As part of our multi-faceted prevention strategy, we want as many people as possible to be able to access evidence-based information about interpersonal violence.

“I’m interested in the training, but I’m worried about the emotional impact of the work.”

It’s not uncommon for people to develop a better understanding of how domestic violence advocacy will personally impact them during the course of the training. Some feel more confident about it once they get more details, while others decide that direct service isn’t the best fit - and that’s okay! Even though we hope that people will complete the training and volunteer with us afterwards, we never want to put anyone, including our volunteers, in a position where they feel that they can’t make the best decisions for their own well-being. There are no consequences for not completing the training, and students may exit at any time.

“I’m interested in the training, but I don’t live in California.”

You don’t need to live in California, or even the United States more generally, to attend our virtual trainings in spring. You can also still receive certification under California state law (although we can’t guarantee whether or not that certification will be considered valid in your region). At this time, all of our trainings are facilitated in English.

However, you will not be able to volunteer with us unless you live at least half your time in California.

“Can I receive any continuing education (CE) credit for this?”

Not at this time. We can provide a letter confirming your attendance and you will receive certification if you complete the training.

“What does this actually certify me for?”

This certification training is authorized under the requirements of California Evidence Code 1037 and the guidelines set forth by the California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES), one of Walnut Avenue’s primary funders. This certification is legally valid under California state law. While California has some of the highest standards for this certification in the United States, Walnut Avenue cannot guarantee that this certification will be accepted across state or national lines. There is no U.S. federal certification for domestic violence counseling or advocacy at this time.

Completion of this training as a “domestic violence counselor” (i.e. advocate) certifies you to provide crisis intervention services and peer counseling to survivors of domestic violence while under the auspices of a qualifying domestic violence program or agency (such as Walnut Avenue Family & Women’s Center). This comes with some legal privileges, as explained during the course of the training.

“If I get certified, how long does that certification last?”

Certification does not have a legally mandated expiration date after completing the training. However, many organizations will have their own standards. For example, some organizations may require a partial or full re-certification if more than three years have passed since the last date of domestic violence service or training, but this is stipulated by individual organizations and not by law.