MCASA’s Sexual Assault Victim Advocate Fundamentals Training (2026 Online Series)

MCASA next SAVAT will be this September. Learn more and register today!

Spring into training and join us for MCASA’s Sexual Assault Victim Advocate Fundamentals Training Series! 

This is an online training series which includes two weeks of live training sessions and online self-paced learning courses that are designed for advocates who work directly with sexual assault survivors in Maryland. The training covers foundational topics and best practices for advocates providing services to survivors of sexual assault. This free training prepares new advocates for their work with survivors of sexual violence, including child sexual abuse, intimate partner sexual violence, human trafficking, and more. 

Live training sessions will be on weekdays from February 23 - March 6, 2026. There will be one training session each morning. Each week, there will be one afternoon Skills-Building Lab where participants will engage with their fellow learners and practice different skills. MCASA and SALI staff and guest speakers will facilitate these training workshops.

Live Training Schedule

WEEK 1

February 23rd

• Morning Training Session: Crisis Intervention & Advocacy (10 - 11:45am)

February 24th

• Morning Training Session: The Neurobiology of Trauma (10 - 11:30am)

February 25th

• Morning Training Session: Confidentiality, Ethics, & Legal Options for Survivors of Sexual Assault (10 - 11:30am)
• Afternoon Skills-Building Lab: Empowering Survivors (2:30 - 3:30pm)

February 26th

• Morning Training Session: The Intersection of Intimate Partner Violence & Sexual Assault (10am - 12pm)

February 27th

• Morning Training Session: Maryland's Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI): Victim Notification Protocol (10 - 11:45am)

WEEK 2

March 2nd 

• Morning Training Session: Serving Sexual Assault Survivors from Underserved Populations (10 - 11:30am)

March 3rd 

• Morning Training Session: The Roles of a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) (10am - 12pm)

March 4th

• Morning Training Session: Money Matters: Financial Empowerment for Survivors of Sexual Assault (10 - 11:30am)

March 5th

• Morning Training Session: The Intersection of Human Trafficking & Sexual Assault (10 - 11:45am)
• Afternoon Skills-Building Lab: Safety Planning (2:30 - 3:30pm)

March 6th 

• Morning Training Session: Professional Ethics, Vicarious Trauma, & Self-Care (10 - 11:30am)

Registration & Training Information:

• All training sessions and labs will be in Eastern Standard Time. 
• Registration for this training is free and open to all advocates and service providers.
• You only need to register once to attend all or as many of the sessions as you would like.
  • Upon registering, you will receive the Zoom login information for the Morning Training Sessions. You will use the same Zoom login each morning. 
  • All registrants will receive an email with the Zoom login information for the Afternoon Skills-Building Labs both one day before and one hour before each Lab. 
• The Morning Training Sessions will be recorded and made available to registrants after each training session. 

• The Afternoon Skills-Building Labs will not be recorded. Participation is strongly encouraged. We suggest having your camera on and communicating with your fellow learners. 

Certificates of Attendance & CEUs:

• Certificates of Attendance which include Social Work CEUs, Licensed Professional Counselor CEUs, and Maryland Victim Advocate CEUs may be requested until Friday, April 3rd, 2026, via the Certificate Request Forms that will be shared after each training session.  
  • CEU hours are subject to change based on the length of each training.
  • After April 3rd, we will not accept anymore requests for CEUs or Certificates of Attendance for the training sessions and labs. 
  • You may continue watching the recorded training sessions after April 3rd.