Shawna Morris
Child Advocacy Center’s Director
I began my career with Help-In-Crisis on October 1, 2002 in Tahlequah as the Sexual Assault Services Coordinator. I worked in this position for a few months until a new position opened in the county where I lived. Sequoyah County is where I would continue my work within Help-In-Crisis as the Court Advocate. I really enjoyed my role as court advocate; assisting individuals with emergency protective orders, and accompanying them to court among other required duties. I held this position for 9 years. I then was offered a new role within our agency as the MDT Coordinator for Adair and Sequoyah Counties, and Child Forensic Interviewer. For about a year; I was the only child forensic interviewer within our agency taking me to all four counties within our district. Interviewing children is both a science and an art. You not only have to be able to ask the appropriate questions, you have to be able to listen. You develop a skill of questioning and listening. After a short period, I was offered the Child Advocacy Center’s Director position. I have been with Help-In-Crisis going on 21 years and couldn’t imagine any other career for myself. Helping children is where my heart is. It is not easy work; and some days are definitely harder than others, but it was definitely my calling. My degree is actually in Health, Physical Education and Athletic Injury. I went into that field before starting my work with Help-In-Crisis because I always knew that I wanted to help people in some way. At Help-In-Crisis I have been able to help a lot of people in many different ways.