About Elizabeth McCourt, JD

Elizabeth McCourt, JD, serves as Chief Health and Safety Officer at YWCA Delaware, where she leads the organization’s comprehensive Sexual Assault Response Center (SARC). She began her journey with YWCA Delaware in 2015, and during her seven years of leadership, service delivery expanded dramatically—from 198 individuals served in 2015 to 5,636 in 2021.

In her role, Elizabeth oversees all aspects of YWCA Delaware’s free and confidential rape crisis services, which are available to survivors aged 12 and older and their non-offending family members, friends, and partners. She manages operations across SARC’s four sites in Georgetown, New Castle, and Wilmington, including medical and legal accompaniments, counseling, aftercare, support groups, outreach and prevention education, professional trainings for staff and interns, and the coordination of hundreds of volunteer Sexual Assault Response Advocates. She also leads SARC’s 24/7 rape crisis hotline and convenes the center’s advisory council.

Elizabeth is recognized as one of YWCA Delaware’s strongest advocates for health and safety, working tirelessly to ensure thousands of women, youth, and families have access to compassionate care, crisis intervention, and pathways to healing. She remains deeply committed to SARC’s mission: to provide hope, healing, and empowerment for all whose lives have been impacted by sexual assault and domestic violence—whether the trauma occurred yesterday or years ago.

Reflecting on her work, Elizabeth shares, “SARC is about ensuring survivors have someone to hold space for their experiences, and for their recovery to include hope, healing, and empowerment. For every person brave enough to share what has happened to them, there must be an advocate with a reassuring voice and presence to remind them they are not alone, it is not their fault, and healing is possible.”