Children's Advocacy Centers of Virginia

10/19/2026

Help us spread the word by sharing this post with someone who would be a great fit!

Make your work matter. Join Safe Harbor! ❤️❤️❤️

Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center is seeking a Child Forensic Interviewer / Child & Family Advocate to join our team.

This position combines specialized, child-centered forensic interviewing with advocacy and support for children and their non-offending caregivers. Working alongside our multidisciplinary team, you’ll help ensure children and families receive a coordinated, compassionate response to suspected abuse.

We’re looking for someone who brings strong communication skills, sound judgment, a commitment to child safety, and the ability to work effectively with children, families, and community partners.

Interested? Learn more about the position and apply here:
https://www.indeed.com/job/child-family-advocate-child-forensic-interviewer-60740dc2838017f6

10/15/2026

CACVA is thankful to the Virginia Attorney General’s Office for inviting us to participate in Virginia’s Interagency Working Group on Human Trafficking. This important initiative brings together representatives from state agencies and organizations to reinforce Virginia’s response to human trafficking.

No single organization can do this work alone. By sharing knowledge, strengthening partnerships, and improving how we respond, we ensure children and youth who experience trafficking are recognized, supported, and connected to the services they need to begin healing.

The meeting focused on improving coordination across agencies, sharing current initiatives and challenges, and building a stronger understanding of labor trafficking.

Children’s Advocacy Centers play an important role in identifying and responding to child victims of trafficking, and we appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with statewide partners to strengthen identification, intervention, and support for vulnerable children and youth across the Commonwealth.

If you or someone you know needs immediate assistance, the National Human Trafficking Hotline can be reached at 1-888-373-7888 or by texting 233733 (BEFREE).

10/12/2026

Children cannot benefit from services they cannot access, understand, or trust.

In September, three forensic interviewers from Virginia traveled to Dallas for APSAC’s very first Spanish Forensic Interviewing Training.

Lesly Hernandez from Loudoun County Children’s Advocacy Center (LAWS), Tali Galiano from Valley Children’s Advocacy Center, and Olivia Weinel from the Center for Alexandria’s Children joined professionals from across the country to strengthen their skills and learn practical tools for conducting forensic interviews in Spanish.

“As someone who is not a native Spanish speaker, I gained so much knowledge and practical tools that I can bring back to my MDT and incorporate into my forensic interviews,” Olivia said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue growing my skills so I can better support children and families in Spanish.”

Across Virginia, Children’s Advocacy Centers are committed to removing barriers so more children and families can access the service, support, and care they deserve.

10/08/2026

With a record number of registrants, this year’s Justice in Action Conference is shaping up to be our best yet!

From October 28th to 30th, professionals and advocates from across Virginia will come together in Virginia Beach to learn, share ideas, strengthen connections, and continue building a stronger response for children and families impacted by abuse.

Seeing this many people committed to learning and growing together says so much about the dediction of Virginia’s child advocacy community.

A heartfelt thank you to The Sam & Marion Golden Foundation, Uno Translation Services and Communications, Guardify, and The Mama Bear Effect for sponsoring and supporting this year's conference. We can’t wait to see everyone in Virginia Beach!

09/29/2026

What does it take to conduct a forensic interview with a child?

Training. Practice. A deep understanding of trauma. And an approach designed to gather accurate information while keeping the needs of children at the center.

Earlier this month, professionals from across Virginia gathered in Christiansburg for ChildFirst®, an intensive five-day forensic interviewing training developed by the Zero Abuse Project.

ChildFirst® combines classroom instruction with hands-on skill-building, review of recorded forensic interviews, guided reading, and a written examination. Participants build practical skills for conducting effective, trauma-informed forensic interviews as part of a coordinated multidisciplinary response to allegations of child abuse.

The training brings together professionals including CAC staff, child protective services, law enforcement investigators, and Commonwealth’s Attorneys. That collaborative multidisciplinary learning matters. The response to child abuse does not belong to one agency, and strengthening collaboration across systems helps create a more consistent, coordinated response for children and families.

CACVA’s Emily Simpson, Program Specialist for Multidisciplinary Teams and Forensic Interviewers, led the training. We’re grateful for every professional who spent five intensive days learning, practicing, and strengthening their skills.

When a child has something difficult to tell us, how we listen matters.

📷 Staunton Brand & Wedding Photographer | October Grace Media

09/29/2026

Congratulations, Charlé. We're so proud to have you on our team!!

Congratulations to Charlé McCauley, FACT’s 2026 Champion for Children!

For more than a decade, Charlé has worked to protect children, strengthen families and improve systems that respond to child abuse.

She spent nearly nine years as a forensic interviewer, working directly with more than 1,000 children and families. Today, as director of communications for Children's Advocacy Centers of Virginia (), she leads statewide communications, public awareness and legislative advocacy to strengthen Virginia’s response to child abuse.

Charlé’s commitment to children and families exemplifies what it means to be a FACT Champion.

We look forward to honoring her Oct. 1 during FACT’s 40th anniversary celebration in Richmond.

Learn more at our website: fact.virginia.gov

09/27/2026

The Mama Bear Effect is dedicated to preventing child sexual abuse by empowering adults with the knowledge, tools, and confidence to protect children. Through approachable education, practical prevention resources, and thoughtfully designed materials, they help families and communities have important conversations about body safety, boundaries, and abuse prevention.

We are very proud to welcome The Mama Bear Effect as a Justice in Action sponsor and grateful for their continued commitment to creating safer communities for children. Thank you for investing in this work and helping us bring this community together as we continue 17 years of Justice in Action.

09/23/2026

On September 23rd, we’re asking our community to raise its voice for children and families.

The Crime Victims Fund (CVF) is a critical source of federal funding for victim services, including the work of Children’s Advocacy Centers. But declining deposits into the fund have resulted in significant cuts to services across the country, putting critical, lifesaving services and victims’ lives at risk.

The bipartisan Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act (S.1892) would provide a temporary solution by directing additional non-taxpayer dollars into the Crime Victims Fund while Congress works toward a long-term solution. The House unanimously passed its version of the legislation earlier this year.

Now we need the Senate to act.

On September 23rd’s National Day of Action, we’re joining Children’s Advocacy Centers and victim service organizations across the country in asking our communities to contact their Senators and urge them to support and pass the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act.

Here in Virginia, we’re asking you to contact Senator Tim Kaine and Senator Mark Warner.

It only takes a few minutes to make a call or send an email, but hearing directly from constituents matters.

Senator Kaine: https://www.kaine.senate.gov/contact/share-your-opinion or (202) 224-4024
Senator Warner: https://www.warner.senate.gov/contact/write-to-mark/ or (202) 224-2023

You can say: “I’m a Virginia constituent, and I’m asking Senator Kaine/Warner to support the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act, S. 1892 as a cosponsor, and help protect critical services for children and other victims of crime.”

Help us make sure Virginia’s voice is heard. Call. Email. Share. And ask someone else to do the same.

09/18/2026

We’re proud to welcome Guardify as a sponsor for the Justice in Action Conference and grateful for their support of the professionals working every day to protect children and pursue healing and justice.

Guardify is a mission-driven technology partner helping Children’s Advocacy Centers and multidisciplinary teams securely manage, protect, and share sensitive digital evidence. Built with the unique needs of child advocacy in mind, their technology helps connect CACs, law enforcement, child protective services, prosecutors, medical professionals, MDT partners, making collaboration and evidence management more secure and seamless.

Thank you, Guardify, for investing in this work, helping strengthen the multidisciplinary response, and helping us bring this community together as we continue 17 years of Justice in Action.

09/14/2026

Strong MDTs do not happen by accident. They are built through trust, clear roles, shared decision-making, effective communication, and a commitment to continually improving the response for children and families.

Last week, professionals from across Virginia came together for Good to Great for MDTs, a multidisciplinary team training hosted by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services.

Led by Rebecca Simmons (Children’s Advocacy Centers of Virginia), Kayla Stultz (Christiansburg Police Department), and Jenna Foster (DCJS), the training focused on strengthening collaboration, communication, case review, and overall team functioning within child abuse multidisciplinary teams.

Attendees included law enforcement, child protective services, prosecutors, victim advocates, forensic medical professionals, mental health clinicians, and other MDT partners representing localities from throughout the Commonwealth.

We are grateful to Dept of Criminal Justice Svcs for investing in this work and to every participant who brought their experience, perspective, and commitment to making Virginia’s multidisciplinary response even stronger.

📷 Staunton Brand & Wedding Photographer | October Grace Media