Volunteer Program
The mission of the volunteer program at Steps to End Domestic Violence is to invite the community into antiviolence work, expand the network of Vermont residents who are educated in healthy relationships and supporting survivors, and enhance our ability to provide access to emergency housing, family support services, emotional support, and crisis intervention to survivors of intimate partner violence.
Volunteers are an essential part of our ability to provide trauma-informed services to survivors. You expand and enhance our delivery of emotional support, crisis intervention, and information and referrals via our hotline; support children and families who have experienced intimate partner violence; help keep our shelter running smoothly; and bring our anti-violence work and philosophies into your own communities, making support for survivors more accessible for all residents of Chittenden County.
Program Mission & Philosophy
Volunteering Details
Requirements - Please Read Before Applying!
Must be at least 18 years of age for all positions except the Volunteer Mentor position. Volunteer Mentors must be at least 21 years of age.
All positions must complete a Volunteer Orientation before beginning to take shifts. Some additional trainings may be required depending on the position.
Steps to End Domestic Violence recognizes that survivors can be the best advocates and is committed to welcoming survivors of domestic violence as volunteers in our organization.
To avoid conflicts of interest, former service users are welcome to apply to volunteer following a minimum of a 12-month separation from emergency housing services and a minimum of a 6-month separation from all other services.
Most positions require that you complete Community Advocate Training (CAT) before starting your shifts.
Community Advocate Training
Our next CAT will be held in person in August of 2026. Please visit this page for more details and to register.
CAT is a 20-hour training offered through Steps four times a times a year. We alternate offering it as a virtual and an in person course. There is no cost to volunteers wanting to participate in this training.
Once complete, CAT grants you VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege, which allows you to hold crisis information confidential under most circumstances.
When you submit a volunteer application, you will automatically be added to the notification list for when the next round of CAT registration begins. While there are some limited ways to get involved before completing CAT, you will not be able to volunteer in a direct service capacity (i.e. on Hotline or with the Family Program) before you have completed this training. Please keep in mind that this means there may be a 3-4 month wait before you are able to engage in direct service.
Application Process
Review the open positions below.
Submit a Volunteer Application. Clicking this link will take you to our Bloomerang Volunteer Organization page. Click the sign up for organization button to submit an application. Refer to the list below for detailed descriptions of our volunteer needs!
The Volunteer Coordinator will reach out to you with any questions or to schedule next steps, including CAT and a volunteer orientation.
Volunteer Roles
This position staffs our 24/7 hotline and provides direct service to those affected by intimate partner violence by providing emotional support, safety planning, and connection to services such as our emergency housing, housing retention, legal, or youth programs.
Volunteer Hotline Advocate
-
Responsibilities:
Answer hotline, chatline, and emails: provide information, advocacy, support and referrals, and crisis management and intervention as needed.
Maintain call records and record services provided in our electronic database.
Foster a supportive community in the shelter by maintaining confidentiality and professionalism.
Training Requirements:
Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain Vermont Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege before answering any hotline calls/chats/emails.
Complete at least two shadow shifts and two reverse shadow shifts as well as training on our electronic database before taking a solo shift.
Complete 3-hour mandated reporter training before answering any hotline calls/chats/emails. (NOTE: If you are already a documented Mandated Reporter in the state of Vermont, you do not need to repeat the training).
Time Commitment:
2 hotline shifts/month; 3-month minimum commitment.
Shifts are available Monday-Friday between 9:00am and 5:00pm. Each shift is typically 4.5 hours long; however, if you are only able to do 2.5-3.5 hour shifts we still encourage you to reach out!
This position helps supervise and facilitate the numerous groups that our Family Program offers to our service users and their children! Ranging from movement group to arts and crafts to a group just for tiny tots, with offerings changing and expanding in response to need, having an extra set of eyes and hands for each group ensures that children who have been exposed to intimate partner violence continue to have access to these spaces as they navigate a time of deep and often traumatic transition in their lives.
Children’s Group Volunteer Facilitator
-
Responsibilities:
Work with the family program staff to set up for and co-facilitate children’s playgroups at the shelter.
Interact kindly, compassionately, and professionally with children of various ages from a wide range of backgrounds.
Maintain service user confidentiality and abide by Vermont mandated reporter requirements.
Training Requirements:
Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.
Complete 3-hour Mandated Reporter Training. If you have documentation that you are already a mandated reporter in the state of Vermont, you do not need to go through the training again!
Shadow at least one group with the family program to get familiar with our residents, their children, and family program protocols. More shadow shifts may be required for those with no or minimal experience working with children.
Time Commitment:
Multiple groups are held each week, Monday-Friday.
We ask that you commit to helping with at least one group a month.
We also welcome your own thought, creativity, and innovation. If you have an interest, skill, or expertise that would lend itself well to a new group, our Youth Program can work with you to start a new group and add to our current offerings!
Most groups are held between the hours of 9 am and 5 pm, with the exceptions being groups that are held in the evening time to accommodate school and work schedules. These groups may involve dinner and are held less frequently. Most groups are held after school and the kids get off their buses by 3:40 pm. On days off from school, groups may change to accommodate those hours.
This position would learn to co-facilitate one of our long running peer support groups, or we could help you start your own! Note: following the peer support model, this position is only open to folks who have lived experience with Intimate Partner Violence.
Peer Support Volunteer Facilitator
-
Responsibilities:
Work with our current support group staff to provide co-facilitation or coverage as needed for one or multiple of our peer support groups.
If you are interested in starting and running your own peer support group, we will teach you how to do that and provide all the support you need in getting it set up!
Training Requirements:
Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.
Complete a volunteer orientation.
Attend at least one of our current peer support groups to get a sense of how they run, and then meet with the Education and Outreach Coordinator to discuss options for providing coverage, co-facilitating, or starting your own group.
You can visit this page to take a look at our current peer support groups and get a sense of how you might want to help. Note that our women’s support group does not currently need a co-facilitator.
Time Commitment:
Variable, depending on whether you are interested in co-facilitating, helping to provide coverage when staff are unavailable, or starting your own group.
You can visit the support group page linked above to see what the current group schedule is.
If you have a skill—such as cooking, yoga, or budgeting—that you want to bring into shelter, let us know! We can help arrange a workshop for our residents to attend.
Skills-Based Workshop Volunteer
-
These can be one-off events or an ongoing series, depending on your interests and availability and resident engagement. You may be asked to do some trainings with our Education and Outreach Coordinator and/or shelter staff before presenting to residents.
This position is perfect for those who have a deep love of putting things in their place and just want to take a few hours to pop in a podcast and give some quality attention to organizing and cleaning our donations and supplies for shelter residents so that they are well-stocked and accessible when needed. If you love admin, we occasionally have filing projects that you could assist with in this role!
Shelter Volunteer
-
Responsibilities:
Work with the the shelter coordinator and emergency housing advocates to maintain an inventory of current shelter supplies.
Sort in-kind donations and move them to the appropriate section of the basement storage area as necessary.
Keep house laundry and heat treat moving.
Occasionally help out with sorting files and shredding old paperwork.
Training Requirements:
Complete our 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege.
Complete a volunteer orientation.
Short meeting with the Shelter Coordinator to get an overview of the system for sorting and processing donations and shelter supplies.
Time Commitment:
Shifts are available to sign up for in 2-hour blocks between the hours of 9-5 Monday-Friday.
This role is designed to support children or youth (ages 5 - 18) who have moved out of Steps emergency housing by providing a safe adult outside their family with whom they can build a relationship.
Research has shown that having safe and stable relationships with trusted adults is a protective factor for children and youth who have experienced trauma; mentors will connect with their mentees by listening, learning about their interests, and spending time with them in community.
While this is not a skills-based mentoring program, if a mentee expresses a desire to work on certain skills (for example, homework or college or career prep), that can certainly be incorporated into the mentoring relationship. Mentors must be 21 years of age or older.
This position is designed to help spread the word about Steps and the services we offer! You will be tabling at outreach events, setting up for fundraisers, helping out with group clean up projects, and making sure our annual social runs smoothly!
Event Volunteer
-
Training Requirements:
Attend a volunteer orientation in order to get familiar with the shelter, the services we provide, and general volunteer policies and protocols.
Steps to End Domestic Violence is seeking passionate volunteers to join our Board of Directors. Operating under a Policy Governance model, our board members dedicate their time, professional experience, leadership skills, and financial resources to guide the agency’s strategic direction.
Board Member
-
What is Policy Governance?
Unlike working boards that manage day-to-day operations, our Board focuses on the "big picture," like setting high-level strategy, creating policy, and evaluating the Executive Director. This role is ideal for individuals who want to drive systemic change and long-term vision.
Who We Are Looking For:
We are building a diverse board to lead Steps into the future. We are seeking candidates with a commitment to the anti-violence movement who can serve as community ambassadors for Steps. We highly encourage candidates with experience in development, community and/or organizational leadership, community or statewide connections, and passion to apply.
Volunteer Mentor
-
Training
Complete 20-hour Community Advocate Training to obtain VT Victim and Crisis Worker Privilege
Complete VT Mandated Reporter Training
Complete mentorship training and onboarding
Onboarding includes a background check, reference check, and interview
Time Commitment
If matched, mentors will work with their mentees for a period of one year
Mentors must be able to commit to spending at least four hours a month with their mentee, with at least one meeting a week
Mentors should also expect to have regular check-ins with program staff