Become the first call.

California law requires that anyone providing direct service to DV survivors (paid or volunteer) complete 40 hours of specialized training before taking calls, running groups, or sitting with families. It is a legal minimum, not a ceiling. We treat it as the floor of good practice.

The curriculum is built by the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence and delivered by people who've been in the work for a decade or more. It's practical, honest about what's hard, and specific enough that on your first shift you'll know what to say when someone asks "what now?"

Finish this and you can step into direct-service volunteer roles here, at any California DV shelter, or into paid advocate positions statewide. Many cohort graduates stay on as Rainbow volunteers. Some become staff.

[ WHO IT'S FOR ]

• ✓ Future volunteers & interns at Rainbow
• ✓ MSW / MFT / psychology students earning field hours
• ✓ Career-changers moving into the DV or sexual-assault field
• ✓ Nurses, teachers, HR, and clergy who want to spot and respond well
• ✓ Anyone who's ever thought: 'I wish I'd known what to say.'

"By the end, you'll have language for what you've seen in your own family. That's the part no one warns you about. And it's the part that makes this training worth forty hours."

— Senior Advocate, Cohort lead

[ 04 / RESERVE A SEAT ]

Cohorts cap at 12. Apply early.

Complete the form to reserve your seat. The Volunteer Coordinator will reach out within two business days for a 15-minute intro call.

Submit the form to reserve your seat. Tuition is $150. Full and partial waivers are available. The Volunteer Coordinator will follow up with tuition payment or waiver instructions.