Cheryl Anne Davis is a senior English major. Since fall of 2023, she has been interning at WOAR, Pennsylvania’s oldest and largest sexual violence crisis center. Read on to learn about how she secured her internship, the training it required, and Cheryl Anne’s day-to-day experience providing support and resources to survivors.
Content Warning: While the contents of this article do not detail any actual instances of sexual violence, the subject matter could still be upsetting to some readers.
Where is your internship and what is your position?
I currently intern at the Philadelphia Center Against Violence, formerly known as Women Organized Against Rape (WOAR), and my role is Crisis Office Intern.
Can you tell us more about the organization?
WOAR is the first “above ground” rape crisis center in the country. They're also the only rape crisis center in Philadelphia, servicing all of Philadelphia County, and the largest rape crisis center in the state of Pennsylvania. WOAR is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit rape crisis center that works to eradicate sexual violence through advocacy while providing educational resources and treatment options to abuse victims and their support systems.
Part of the organization’s advocacy is to assist victims in court and provide medical accompaniment. WOAR works directly with Philadelphia Sexual Assault Response Center (PSARC) to assist victims/survivors in the process of completing a forensic rape exam. Crisis advocates are available to support victims/survivors during that vulnerable process and, in that same regard, support survivors at court proceedings related to the case. Another important component of WOAR’s mission is to fight systems of oppression (e.g., racism and sexism) that exist within the sexual violence sphere.
How did you secure your internship?
In the summer of 2023, I took a Professional Development course, and one of our early assignments was to create a Handshake account. On Handshake, there are many employers and organizations that you can follow, and in turn, they scout for prospective interns and employees. After organizing and personalizing my Handshake account, I started following WOAR. Initially, my profile was viewed by WOAR, but I did not receive an invitation to submit an application. However, a few weeks after being on the platform, WOAR did post volunteer and internship opportunities for current undergraduate students. I submitted an application and an updated resume, and a few weeks later, I received an invitation to interview. I ended up completing two interviews before moving forward in the hiring process.
After agreeing to the WOAR acceptance offer for an unpaid internship, I was required to complete a rigorous set of clearances, e.g., FBI fingerprint background, PA State Criminal History Check, and Department of Human Services (DHS) Child Abuse clearance. After submitting clearances, I had to attend WOAR’s organization and history training which was over 50 hours of virtual learning between August and December 2023. I then completed more than 45 hours of mandatory Certified Sexual Assault Counselor (SAC) training in preparation for becoming a Certified Sexual Assault Counselor and over three hours of Child Abuse Mandated Reporting training with Pennsylvania’s DHS. It is important to note that I would not be able to fulfill the duties of a Crisis Response Intern had I not completed the required clearances and certification courses.
Prior to joining the Handshake platform, I had actually been following WOAR’s organization for several years and applied to be a volunteer twice, but I never received a response from the organization until I got on the Handshake platform. I learned that WOAR is very serious when it comes to who they allow to represent and advocate for their organization, so I think going through a verifiable platform was an integral part of securing an internship at WOAR.
What does your day-to-day look like? Is it remote or in-person?
I work a total of 16 hours a week. On Mondays, I work from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM at their Center City office. I work virtually on Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
Mondays consist of clerical and logistical tasks and some advocacy. My responsibilities include mailing client notice letters, sending emails, updating and organizing organization manuals, printing pamphlets, and creating Excel spreadsheets to keep records of organized items such as donated clothes. The other duties I have are taking hotline crisis counseling calls (providing support and/or resources) and calling clients to complete intake paperwork to establish active status and services with WOAR.
Saturdays are the most advocacy-immersed for me, and this is when the extensive SAC training comes into play. Currently, I am working with four clients who are waitlisted to see a licensed psychotherapist. Unfortunately, the waiting period for this free therapy service can be as long as six to nine months. In the interim, clients receive weekly 30-minute check-in calls with a certified sexual assault counselor (i.e., me). During weekly check-in calls, clients can talk about whatever they want, whether they’re seeking guidance, emotional support, or internal or external resources.
Another duty I have is to take hotline calls. In addition to callers who may call WOAR’s hotline for emotional support and coping strategies, they could be calling because an assault has just happened and they need guidance on how to proceed. They could also be calling because they were triggered and reminded of abuse that happened years ago. Regardless of the timeline of abuse or assault, I am there to offer support and guidance to victims and entities calling on behalf of a victim.
Did you always want to work in this type of public service?
I plan to become an Assistant District Attorney (ADA). After completing my Bachelor's, I plan to attend Temple's Beasley School of Law. I want to be a practicing ADA within the Family Violence & Sexual Assault Unit for the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office. My internship at WOAR is the perfect internship because it immerses me in the population of people I want to serve. My internship at WOAR is already helping me to foster better active listening skills and patience, as approaching and working with victims/survivors of sexual abuse is a delicate task that requires a considerable amount of attentiveness and compassion. Victims/survivors of sexual abuse deserve more than "representation" during the trial process–they deserve to be seen and heard. Getting first-hand anecdotal experience doing this type of advocacy work is an essential step toward becoming a thriving, empathic ADA.
What influenced your choice to be an English major? How has it been beneficial?
When I started out at junior college, pre-law or law majors weren't options. As a default, I chose Criminal Justice, and I got all A's in my first semester, but I felt it wasn't challenging or the direction I wanted to go in. The criminal justice major focus seemed to veer more specifically toward law enforcement and corrections. Knowing that I wanted to go into law, after researching and talking to mentors and advisors, I decided to change my major to English because it's more expansive. The legal profession requires excellent analytical, critical, and logical thinking skills, and I have always enjoyed reading and writing, so it felt natural to choose English as my major.
In conversations, people are always surprised to learn that I'm an English major and in the Honors Program. In discourse, I'm always able to articulate myself well, and that's a credit to being an English major rather than a Chemistry or Art major. English as a major is also unique in that, through literature, you're offered a broader scope of writing and how to analyze many mediums and scenarios.