Amber Jurgens (she/her) is the Director of Survivor Leadership at the Nebraska Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence. In her role, she leads the Survivor Leadership project, which aims to equip survivors with skills, resources, and opportunities to use their lived experience expertise and become leaders in their communities. Through training, support and opportunities, the Survivor Leadership project intends to develop a network of post-crisis survivors ready to play active roles in shaping policies and services impacting survivors across the state of Nebraska.
Amber has a diverse background in advocacy and community engagement. She previously coordinated a healthcare navigation program at Friendship Home, a domestic violence shelter in Lincoln, Nebraska. During this time, she collaborated with partners such as the Brain Injury Alliance of Nebraska, UNL and UNMC to raise awareness around the intersection of brain injury and intimate partner violence. Her efforts contributed to innovative intervention and enhanced support for survivors. Amber remains active in this work as an External Stakeholder Board member for a collaborative project led by UNMC-College of Public Health funded through the National Institute of Health.
A previous career as a Probation Officer handling cases involving sexual and domestic violence across juvenile and adult populations brings valuable insight to her advocacy work. As graduate of Leadership Lincoln and the Nebraska Victims Assistance Academy, Amber lends her lived experience expertise and leadership to her community through involvement on the Dispute Resolution Advisory Council and Family Health Services, Inc. Board of Directors. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Education and Human Sciences and a Master of Arts Degree from Bellevue University in Human Services. As a survivor herself, Amber is dedicated to uplifting survivor voice and leadership with a commitment to social justice and healing.