Victim Advocate (DART)

Family Services; City of Poughkeepsie (NY); On-site; Full time

Job summary

A leading organization seeks a DART Victim Advocate to provide essential support to victims in crisis. The role involves liaising with law enforcement, offering casework services, and ensuring victims receive necessary assistance. Ideal candidates will have a degree in human services or relevant experience, strong communication skills, and a commitment to advocacy. This full-time position includes on-call duties and offers comprehensive benefits.

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision coverage

403(b) retirement plan with employer match

Generous paid vacation and personal time

Employee assistance program (EAP)

Pet insurance

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or 3-5 years experience in human services, counseling, or advocacy.
• Complete NYS DOH Rape Crisis Counselor training.

Responsibilities

• Provide casework services including crisis counseling and advocacy.
• Assist victims with police contact and file reports.
• Participate in on-call rotation for 24-hour hotlines.

Skills

Communication

Advocacy

Crisis Counseling

Education

Bachelor’s degree in human services or related field

Tools

MS Word

MS Excel

Job description

Title: DART Victim Advocate

Rate: $25.93 per hour

Status: Non-Exempt, Full-Time, 32 hours per week, with on-call requirement

Reports to: Coordinator of Advocacy

Function:

The DART Victim Advocate acts as the liaison to the police department including co-location at the police department, providing outreach and assistance to victims who have had police contact or wish to file a police report.The DART Victim Advocate will receive referrals directly from the Police Department. This Advocate will be responsible for following up on police referrals and providing casework services to clients including crisis counseling, safety planning, advocacy, information and referrals, emergency financial assistance, and claims filing.

Job Requirements:

• Must have a bachelor’s degree in the human services or related field.
• Or 3-5 years relative work experience in human services, counseling, and/or advocacy.

Other Requirements:

• Complete and maintain training certification as NYS DOH Rape Crisis Counselor.
• Complete mandated reporter training; Report any behavior or implication of behavior of child abuse to the appropriate authorities.
• Must be able to get to and from various work locations throughout work shift and outside of office hours for on-call purposes. This includes Family Services, local courts, hospitals, police departments, social services, etc.
• Strong computer skills, including a working knowledge of an e-mail package and MS software programs: Word and Excel.
• Established cell phone, willing to use for work (will be reimbursed), with effective coverage for the Dutchess County area.

Benefits:

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• 403(b) retirement plan with employer match up to 5%.
• Generous paid vacation, holiday, sick and personal time package (2 weeks’ vacation in first year, 13 paid holidays per year, 12 sick days per year and 4 personal days per year).
• Access to Family Services’ Compassionate Leave Programwhere employees can donate/receive unused time off.
• Group term life and long-term disability insurance.
• Supplemental life insurance & accidental death and dismemberment coverage (AD&D),
• Supplemental insurance through Aflac.
• Employee assistance program (EAP).
• Pet insurance.

Our Mission:

Family Services brings people together to find the support they need, improving their lives and communities, and building a stronger safer Hudson Valley.

Our Values:

Compassion – Extending empathy and understanding to others.

Integrity – Being honest and dependable.

Hope – Believing in the strength of the human spirit and heart, to emerge and thrive when faced with a challenge.

Diversity – Promoting a vision of community comprised of wide-ranging assets.

Respect – Treating all individuals with dignity and without judgement.

Community – Recognizing and reinforcing the importance of our world as being comprised of people of differing strengths and perspectives.

Justice – Promoting social and economic equity and fairness.

Quality – Aspiring for excellence in every aspect of our work.

Job Responsibilities:

• Provide casework services to clients including crisis counseling, safety planning, advocacy, information and referrals, emergency financial assistance, and claims filing.
• Assist victims who have had police contact or wish to file a police report. Review domestic incidents and outreach to victims and officers as appropriate.
• Accompany victims of crime to hospitals, police departments, and court while providing crisis counseling, information and referrals, assistance with crime victims compensation claims, criminal justice advocacy and personal advocacy.
• Provide information and referrals to all clients in need following the agencies and departments protocol.
• Expand service reach by researching community organizations and providing community outreach through presentations and tabling events.
• Establish professional relationships and participate in bi-weekly meetings with liaisons from the District Attorney’s Office, Police Department, Dutchess County Probation, and other community agencies, as needed.
• Participate in on-call rotation for evening and weekend coverage of 24-hour hotlines.
• Complete all administrative tasks as assigned on a timely basis, this includes, but is not limited to documenting all activities, preparing weekly and monthly activity reports, maintaining up-to-date case records, and inputting into client database.
• Maintain statistics and prepare reports as needed and maintain up-to-date client records.
• Other duties as assigned based upon the need of program.

Competencies:

• Clear and effective communication, both orally and in writing.
• Ability to work effectively when under extreme pressure.
• Ability to work independently, but relate issues to manager, as appropriate.
• Possess out of the box thinking, resourcefulness, and strong advocacy skills.
• Ability to develop and maintain working relationships with community agencies and stakeholders.
• Ability to remain organized and complete administrative tasks, such as documenting activities and maintaining up-to-date records, in a timely manner.

#INDCP

Work Environment – Family Services Inc. Center for Victim Safety and Support is a 24-hour crisis center.Co-located Advocates will split their time between their law enforcement jurisdiction, advocating/interacting with community agencies and systems, meeting with individuals and working on a team at the Center for Victim Safety and Support, completing documentation and administrative responsibilities and participating in meetings at Family Services.

Family Services, Inc. complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact [e-mail].

Family Services is an equal opportunity employer. We follow federal, state, and local laws prohibiting discrimination in hiring and employment.

Must be authorized to work in the United States without work sponsorship.