Crisis Hotline & Intake Advocate/Crisis Response Advocate

Description

Position Title: MAPP and Rapid Response Advocate 

Bilingual Spanish/English speaking skills required: No, but bilingual/bicultural candidates are strongly preferred

Employment Type/Hours: Full-time, 36 hours per week

Shift: Every Thursday 11a-11p, Friday 12p-12a & Saturday 12p-12a 

Supervisor: Director of Crisis Services/Crisis Services Supervisor 

Department: Crisis Department

FLSA Status: Non-Exempt 

FLSA Exemption Test: N/A

Starting Salary/Hourly Rate: $19.00/hour 

Last Updated: 04/17/2026

Our Mission

Safe Berks provides a safe haven and support for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault through education, advocacy and a relentless commitment to prevent abuse. We are dedicated to fostering an inclusive environment where individuals can be their true selves and feel empowered to stand up to all forms of oppression.

Our Values

SAFETY

We believe that freedom from physical, emotional, spiritual and psychological harm is a basic human right of all individuals. We know that domestic violence, sexual assault, oppression and privilege include power-based tactics that affect physical, emotional and psychological safety and we work to help survivors heal the wounds caused by power-based violence.

RESPECT

We value the dignity of all individuals while appreciating our differences and celebrating and honoring our diversity. Respect is reflected in the way we treat our clients, ourselves and members of the community. We believe our work requires us to reach out to marginalized individuals and communities and to create space to celebrate and nurture them.

EMPOWERMENT

We believe empowerment begins with recognizing and knowing that individually and collectively Safe Berks clients, staff and volunteers have the strength to make necessary change and to accomplish our goals. We recognize that success is defined by each individual given their experience, talents and culture and we celebrate this success.

EDUCATION

We will educate ourselves and our community to reject and prevent violence and oppression in our own lives and in the lives of the people around us. We recognize that our mission and values are transformational, and we must work with intention to break down social and cultural norms that continue to divide us.

HOPE

We believe that hope is key to our existence, to our ability to persevere and to achieve goals. We recognize that our work fosters hope and resilience and improves physical, emotional, spiritual, and psychological well-being.

Equity and Inclusion

Safe Berks is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment where all staff, residents, clients, board members, and volunteers feel safe and empowered to stand up to oppression of all kinds. We believe that the collective sum of our individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, creative outlets, innovative approaches and solutions, unique capabilities, and talent that our employees exhibit in their work represents the quality of our life-saving services. Reflective of the community we serve and embrace, we celebrate differences in age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity, or expression, language, national origin, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and other characteristics that make our employees unique.

Position Standards

• Direct Service Delivery Standard
• Employee demonstrates a commitment to exceptional service for all individuals seeking assistance from Safe Berks and does so in a manner that is trauma-informed and in line with agency values of safety, respect, empowerment, education, and hope. Employee always maintains confidentiality according to agency requirements, consistently follows agency policies and procedures, and makes good decisions within the boundaries of their position expectations.
• Conduct and Behavioral Standard
• Employee responds to changing circumstances by being innovative and adjusting behavior to fit different situations. Employee performs work with a calm demeanor in stressful situations. Even in situations that may cause employee personal discomfort, they are able to be flexible and understand and balance others diverse views and beliefs.
• Essential Skills Standard
• Employee has strong communication skills, which are essential to the work of an advocate. They express oneself clearly and effectively when speaking and writing. Employee practices active listening by facilitating two-way communication and ensures that information is understood by all parties. They share information in a timely manner using the most appropriate method and follows up with individuals requesting additional information, referrals, or assistance.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities (includes but is not limited to the following):

1. Answer calls from the 24/7 Safe Berks MAPP hotline number.
2. Provide in-person response, support, advocacy, and referrals to victims and survivors at Tower Health Reading Hospital and Penn State Health St. Joseph Hospital.
3. Provide in person response, support, and advocacy to victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault at the Berks County Courthouse, including specific information about the process of filing an emergency petition and/or temporary petition for Protection from Abuse Order (PFA), Sexual Violence Protection Order (SVPO), and Protection from Intimidation Order.
4. Work collaboratively with medical staff, courthouse staff, and other professionals as needed to assist victims and survivors.
5. Assess the needs of a victim or survivor and make the appropriate referrals including, but not limited to, emergency shelter, counseling, and/or legal services. 
6. Have a general understanding of the criminal justice process. 
7. Crosstrain with Crisis Services Department and the Residential Department to answer the hotline, conduct assessments for shelter, maintain safety protocols in the emergency shelter program, etc.
8. Enter and maintain client records and data within the agency’s client database.
9. Attend various meetings and trainings as scheduled.
10. All other duties as determined by departmental director.
11.  This position is considered essential. To ensure continued 24/7 operations this position is required to work onsite during inclement weather, outages, emergencies, and/or authorized administrative office closures. 

Requirements

Requirements:

Employment Experience (amount and kind)

• 2 – 4 years’ experience working in the Human Services field or performing advocacy work 
• Experience working independently and making sound decisions

Education (general level required or specific courses)

• Associate’s degree in Human Services or related field preferred. Degree can be substituted for equivalent and preferred employment experience.
• High school diploma or equivalent degree required

Essential Physical Requirements:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to satisfactorily perform each of the essential duties. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals to perform the essential functions. 

Other Requirements:

• Completion of a background check request; FBI, State Police, and Child Abuse Clearances obtained within required timeframe under Act 153 through agency vendor  

Successful completion of required Advocate Training provided by agency

· Valid driver's license, current vehicle registration, acceptable driving record, and PA Minimum Liability insurance coverage of $15,000 Bodily Injury per person / $30,000 Bodily Injury per accident and $5,000 Property Damage, or $35,000 Combined Single Limit, if your position requires operating a personal or organization owned vehicle.

Safe Berks provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. Safe Berks complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfers, leave of absence, compensation and training.

If you have any questions about open job opportunities please contact Mindy Peiffer, Human Resource Manager, at Mindyp@safeberks.org.