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THRIVE is not like mainstream organizations.
As non-carceral practitioners dedicated to transforming the landscape of mental health for multiply marginalized communities, we recognize that our responsibility is ongoing: to confront, unlearn, and relearn — again and again. This is not a box to check; it is a lifelong practice. We believe the only way to DO better is to BE better.
As an intentional team of Community Care Practitioners, we commit ourselves to continuous growth: ongoing education, open discussion and feedback, grappling honestly with challenges, and interrogating our practice for points of improvement. We invite you to join us in this journey!
What does this mean for you as an applicant?
- You will not receive a quick, formulaic training that tells you what to say or not say. If that’s the approach you are seeking, we are glad to recommend other crisis organizations that provide that model.
- Instead, we will invest deeply in you as a practitioner — through hundreds of hours of personalized training, coaching, and guided practice designed to prepare you for high-quality, humanizing care.
- In return, we expect you to invest back: committing to a minimum number of training hours, ongoing coaching and education, and monthly service hours supporting our community members.
- As you grow with us, you will also help sustain THRIVE’s work by mentoring and supporting new practitioners who join our team after you.
Core qualities every applicant must have
To thrive in this work, we ask that every applicant demonstrate the following qualities:
- Coachability – receptive to guidance, consistently trying new approaches.
- Reliability – consistent in showing up, meeting commitments, and being dependable.
- Intentionality – thoughtful and purposeful in words, actions, and presence.
- Engagement with Feedback – willing to receive, reflect on, respond thoroughly to, and implement feedback.
- Dedication to Unlearning and Relearning – actively pursuing study, training, and reflection. Invested in addressing personal biases and socialized systemic oppression and recognizing potential for harming others.
- Commitment to Community – showing up for THRIVE team and community members and self-accountably prioritizing collective care over individual ego.
- Motivation to Grow – self-driven to evolve, deepen practice, and avoid complacency.
- Willingness to be Vulnerable – comfortable appropriately sharing lived experience and developing genuine human connections
- Comfort with Stigmatized Conversations – able to talk openly, respectfully, and non-judgmentally about suicide, self-harm, and other stigmatized mental health experiences.
- Resilience – capacity to navigate challenges with humility, patience, and persistence.
A Note of Support:
We do not expect anyone to arrive fully formed in all of these areas. What matters most is your willingness to grow into them. Our training, mentorship, and ongoing coaching are designed to help you build these qualities in practice. You will be supported every step of the way, and you’ll be part of a community that is unlearning, relearning, and becoming better together.
This is not easy work. It requires humility, endurance, and a willingness to be changed by the process. But if you are ready to engage in a rigorous, non-carceral model of care — one that centers accountability, collective growth, and true community wellness — we would love to walk alongside you.
- Practitioner Service Commitments: Community Care Practitioners are dedicated to community care. In exchange for donated educational programs and ongoing coaching and professional development, selected practitioners agree to satisfactorily complete all programmatic elements, including service to THRIVE through superior quality practicum hours. Read more about our community care model.
- Practitioner Process: Interested parties who meet the requirements below may be invited to apply as Peer Supporters. Eligibility for application into advanced level practitioner certificate programs does require the successful completion of all program elements within an applicant’s current program (e.g. a Peer Supporter becomes eligible to apply to the Community Caregiver educational program once all peer support program elements have been completed, and so on). Review the community care practitioner sequence below for more details.
- Certificate Programs: Each month, our partners at Stronger U donate up to 3 seats ($4000 each) in their Non-Carceral Peer Supporter Certificate Program, depending on capacity, to selected THRIVE Community Care Practitioner applicants. Additionally, each quarter, Stronger U donates up to 3 seats ($6500 each) of their Non-Carceral Community Caregiver Certificate Program, 2 seats ($7200 each) of their Non-Carceral Crisis Responder Level 1 Certificate Program, and 1 seat ($9000) of their Non-Carceral Crisis Responder Level 2 Certificate Program. Practitioner candidates receive rigorous professional development programs and infrastructure, educational materials, and ongoing coaching. Certificates of Completion are provided to practitioners who successfully complete all required programmatic elements of their respective programs.
- If you’re ready to make the commitment to becoming a Community Care Practitioner, we invite you to submit an interest form today!
- Please note: Invited applicants are able to demonstrate understanding of non-carceral fundamentals, comfort supporting of multiply marginalized people through a trauma informed lens, and ability to incorporate THRIVE’s voice into your responses. We invite you to educate yourself through our Instagram page, freely join our partnered community Discord server, Stronger Together, download free resources, or learn through any of these non-carceral spaces prior to submitting your interest form.
Requirements
- 18+ years old
- Reliable internet and private working space; volunteers work remotely, globally
- Commitment to completing all aspects of the educational program you are accepted into. Note that failure to complete an educational program, including all service hours, that was donated to you will incur the fees associated with that program, at a prorated rate.
- Meets the core qualities as listed above
- Demonstrated past experience providing community care (informally or formally).
- Representation is at the heart of THRIVE. We encourage applications from multiply marginalized people across a breadth of identities and experiences.
Community Care Practitioner Sequence
- Peer Supporter: Peer support is the first program in our practitioner sequence and a prerequisite of any subsequent programs. Peer Supporters respond to community members in the Stronger Together Discord server. Peer support requires approximately 5 weeks of training, 150 hours of peer support shifts, ongoing coaching, and additional organizational service hours as assigned. Peer supporters can expect to average about 6 hours per week during training, then 4 hours per week until completing their educational program. Note that all new Community Care Practitioner applicants are applying to the Peer Supporter program.
- Community Caregiver: Community caregiving is the second program in our practitioner sequence. Eligible applicants have completed all programmatic elements of the Peer Support program. Community Caregivers provide support in community programs, such as mentoring Peer Supporters, facilitating peer support groups, designing and facilitating community activities, and other aligned programs. The community caregiving program requires approximately 6 weeks of training, 150 hours of caregiving shifts, ongoing coaching, and additional organizational service hours as assigned. Community Caregivers can expect to average about 6 hours per week during training, then about 5 hours per week until completing their educational program.
- Crisis Responder, Level 1: Lifeline help is the third program in our practitioner sequence and initial entry into crisis response. Eligible applicants have completed all programmatic elements of the Community Caregiver program. Crisis Responder 1s provide warmline (non-intervention-based) support on THRIVE Lifeline. The Crisis Responder, Level 1 program requires approximately 6 weeks of training, 250 hours of lifeline shifts, ongoing coaching, and additional organizational service hours as assigned. Crisis Responder 1s can expect to average about 6 hours per week during training, then about 6-7 hours per week until completing their educational program.
- Crisis Responder, Level 2: Crisis intervention is the fourth program in our practitioner sequence. Eligible applicants have completed all programmatic elements of the Crisis Responder, Level 1 program. Crisis Responder 2s provide crisis intervention on THRIVE Lifeline. The Crisis Responder, Level 2 program requires approximately 6 weeks of training, 250 hours of lifeline shifts, ongoing coaching, and additional organizational service hours as assigned. Crisis Responder 2s can expect to average about 6 hours per week during training, then about 8 hours per week until completing their educational program.
- Apprenticeship: Community Care Practitioners who have successfully completed the Peer Support program may be eligible for our accelerated Apprenticeship program. Apprentices commit to completing the Community Care Practitioner Sequence within 2 years and devoting a minimum of 1 additional year to THRIVE working in a supervisory role.
Community Care Practitioner Benefits
- Donated non-carceral support certificate programs, available to chosen candidates who complete all required programmatic elements and organizational service hours in exchange for the cost of the program.
- Donated coaching and ongoing professional development aimed at helping you reach your personal and professional goals.
- Increasing non-carceral and community care skills at each level
- Donated entry into partnered workshops.
- Join a team of like-minded Non-Carceral Collaborators!
- Expand your global network of Non-Carceral Collaborators
- Access to peer support, community care, and social events
Application Process
Community Care Practitioner applicants are invited from our pool of vetted candidates. If you are interested in joining this pool, please submit the interest form. Our team reviews interest forms and responds within 48 hours. To become vetted, you may be invited to submit responses to sample cases (using our free resources to match THRIVE’s voice and approaches), then attend a Non-Carceral Curious session with THRIVE trainees where you will engage in group coaching and a personal interview with a supervisor.
You may then be invited to enter our Community Care Practitioner application process. If we do not currently have capacity, we will let you know whether you are waitlisted. If we feel that you need additional education and practice to make a successful application, we will refer you to those. Successful applications will be sent to Stronger U for review. Stronger U makes final decisions and sends offer letters based on their capacity.