The Youth Advocacy & Domestic Violence Trainings

Youth Advocacy Training

The youth advocacy training provides the information and skill development needed for being a youth advocate who is facilitating any of our Teen Services.

It is approximately 12 hours in total and is scheduled on an as-needed basis.

Unlike the DV training, the youth advocacy training does not confer any certification upon completion.

After attending a volunteer orientation, you will be provided with the staff contact information needed to schedule a youth advocacy training before beginning in Teen Services.

Interested in the DV training?

As a youth advocate, you may choose to do either training. Completing the DV training still prepares you for Teen Services.

Domestic Violence State Certification Training

Walnut Avenue offers the California state domestic violence certification training twice a year. Spring training begins in April while the Fall training begins in October.

  • The training addresses subjects such as:

    • The definition, manifestations, and dynamics of domestic violence (DV)

    • 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

    Successful completion of the DV training results in certification under California state law as a “domestic violence peer counselor.” The grounds for certification are laid out under California Evidence Code 1037.

  • The DV training totals 40+ hours and is split between recorded lectures and live sessions.

    The recorded content is available in both video and audio form, along with transcripts, through the Course portal on this website. You have one week to listen and respond to that week’s content at your own pace.

    Live sessions are hosted on four separate Fridays, each from 10am-5pm. In Spring, these live sessions are virtual via Zoom. In Fall, the live sessions are in person at our main office on 303 Walnut Avenue, Santa Cruz, California.

  • For individuals wishing to complete the DV training but who do not plan to volunteer with Walnut Avenue, there is a $250 training fee.

    Individuals who complete the training and go on to volunteer with Walnut Avenue are not liable for any training fees.

  • All potential students for our training must meet the following four criteria:

    • Be aged 18 or older

    • At least two years have passed between the last date of receiving any services from Walnut Avenue and the start of training

    • Have some prior experience in navigating online learning content

    • Have access to a device that enables online browsing, utilizing video/audio content, and participating on Zoom

    If a student wishes to volunteer with us upon completing the training, they must also:

    • Be willing to conduct a criminal background check

    • Be a resident of California for at least 50% of the year (citizenship status is irrelevant)

  • 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.

    Please note that a person who begins the training is not obligated to complete it.

    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!

  • Our DV training has certain perspectives embedded into it, including but not limited to:

    • support of individual choice in reproduction and family planning, including abortion

    • inclusiveness of LGBTQ+ identities, relationships, and experiences

    • trans-inclusive language and perspectives

    • support of sex work as real and valid work

    • harm reduction approach to substance use, not abstinence

    • understanding that law enforcement is not a safe or viable option for all survivors

Interested?

Spring Training (Apr-May)

  • Delivery format

    • Recorded lectures via Squarespace Courses

    • Live group sessions hosted via Zoom

  • Registration opens: prior November

  • Registration deadline: Second Friday of April

  • Training begins: Third Friday of April

Register for the virtual Spring 2025 training by attending a general volunteer orientation after November 2024.

Live session dates (virtual): four consecutive Fridays beginning on the fourth Friday of April.

Fall 2025 Training (Oct-Nov)

  • Delivery format

    • Recorded lectures via Squarespace Courses

    • Live group sessions hosted at 303 Walnut Avenue, Santa Cruz, CA

  • Registration opens: prior May

  • Registration deadline: Second Friday of October

  • Training begins: Third Friday of October

Register for the in-person Fall 2025 training by attending a general volunteer orientation after May 2025.

Live session dates (in-person): four consecutive Fridays beginning on the fourth Friday of October.

DV Training FAQs

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • Yes! Domestic violence impacts everyone.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

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