DCHS - Gateway Center Navigator/Advocate Internship
About The Position
Gateway Center Navigator/Advocate Internship College to County Intern 2026 - Department of County Human Services/ Domestic and Sexual Violence Coordination Office/ Gateway Center for Domestic and Sexual Violence Services The Gateway Center is multi-disciplinary agency that serves survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault as well as their children. The Gateway Center provides short-term triage and crisis response to all survivors of domestic and sexual violence who reach out to us for help. We are currently operating a hybrid model of services in which some services are provided telephonically and other services are in person. Services include crisis response, safety planning, danger assessment, restraining order facilitation, information and referrals alongside a wide variety of partners including the Oregon Department of Human Services, Legal Aid services of Oregon, Oregon Crime Victims’ Law Center, Disability Rights Oregon, Disability Awareness Resource Team, the YWCA’s Housing Program, Lifeworks NW therapy services and Impact NW Parent/ Child Therapy services, among many others. We are the first point of contact for many survivors seeking services from the wider continuum of domestic and sexual service providers in Multnomah County. Interns who join the Gateway Center Intake Team will receive extensive training in order to provide comprehensive advocacy services to survivors of domestic and sexual violence. Once trained, interns will be working with survivors providing direct advocacy and also connecting them with other services and resources that they need. In many instances, survivors need support in applying for restraining orders. They may also need support with housing or other needs. Interns will be supported by all members of the Gateway Center Intake Team, and will never work without deep support from professional team members. That said, the role involves exposure to traumatic information and events and candidates should assess their ability to provide crisis services prior to application. This internship provides an excellent opportunity to learn about coordinated community response to domestic and sexual violence that includes: civil legal assistance, criminal justice system response, court access, public benefits by the Oregon Department of Human Services, housing resources for DV/SA survivors, DV/SA culturally-specific services, counseling services for survivors and their children, etc. If this position interests you, but you still have questions, please do apply and we can provide additional detailed information about the job duties and context.
Requirements
- Candidates should be enrolled in a college/university academic institution or have completed a degree within the last year.
- Expresses warm, caring, and friendly attitude towards community members (ability to treat others with respect and have a customer service orientation)
- Ability to respect and maintain confidentiality
- Willing to train up to be a domestic/ sexual violence advocate (Complete DV 101 and other mandatory training)/ on the job training provided
- Willingness to work with community members experiencing crisis/ trauma
- Knowledge of systemic oppressive systems including racism, capitalism, patriarchy, homophobia, ableism, xenophobia, etc.
- Willingness to take responsibility for personal bias and seek to not allow biases to influence service delivery
- Interest in and ability to work with survivors from diverse cultural and economic backgrounds
- Good team player/ willing to ask questions and engage in continuous learning/ Ability to collaborate with the Gateway Center Intake Team, Other Navigators and Community Partners
- Ability to meet deadlines and pay attention to details
Responsibilities
- Deliver trauma-informed and survivor-centered services to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault
- Exercise trauma-informed communication in person and over the phone
- Conduct comprehensive safety planning and danger assessment
- Work in collaboration with survivors to determine and address their needs
- Make appropriate referrals
- Assist participants with filing protective orders
- Assist participants with filling out housing assessments (Safety Stabilization Assessments “SSAs”)
- Assist with front desk reception and mainline
- Other duties as assigned
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What This Job Offers
Career Level
Intern
Education Level
No Education Listed
Number of Employees
501-1,000 employees
