Too often in Louisiana, children face abuse and neglect, resulting in removal from their families and placement in foster care. Each situation is different, thorned with problems that include generational poverty, cycles of abuse, or a lack of access to education. Determining the best path forward for a child is of the utmost importance, but when a fraught family dynamic meets an overburdened public bureaucracy, who will take time to ensure a child’s unique needs are met?
Enter a trained volunteer CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) from Child Advocacy Services. CASAs help children and teens in the foster care system, providing family court judges with critical details that help them make the best possible decisions about a young person’s future. CASAs get to know children and families, connecting them with the resources they need, and speaking up for a child’s safety and well-being.
Child Advocacy Services trains and places CASA volunteers across 10 parishes. It is one of 18 CASA agencies across Louisiana.
A national program, CASA was founded in 1976 by Seattle Juvenile Court Judge David W. Soukup, who had become frustrated with the lack of information judges had when deciding the fates of minors.
Louisiana Div. A, 20th Judicial District Court Judge Kathryn E. “Betsy” Jones says, “CASAs provide “exceptionally valuable” insight and information. Because these court-appointed volunteers are not lawyers, they can provide the court with more personalized details about the unique needs, wants, and home-life circumstances of children in the system.”
“These children are in desperate need of the personalized support and representation in Court that the CASA volunteers provide,” Jones continues. “The CASA volunteers provide a critical support system for children going through the ‘Child In Need of Care’ judicial process.”
“Some cases are easy, and others are difficult, but at the end of the day, you're making a difference in a child's life."
—Tami Price, CASA volunteer
Their contributions are indeed weighty, but CASA volunteers aren’t thrown into their role without support. To become qualified for the role, they train for 30 hours over 6 weeks. Even afterward, volunteers work closely with a supervisor, and have access to a trained team dedicated to providing guidance and support.
Seven-year CASA volunteer Tami Price, now working on her 10th case, says there’s tremendous satisfaction in speaking up for a child. “Some cases are easy, and others are difficult, but at the end of the day, you’re making a difference in a child’s life,” she says. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Price says that she has remained in touch with many of the young people whose cases are now closed. “The kids still contact me, even if they have moved away,” she says.
The CASA program isn’t just effective anecdotally, but systemically, according to research. “We know a child with a CASA volunteer is less likely to return to foster care,” says CASA Program Director LaKisha Penn. “And, while in care, those children are more likely to get the services they need because of CASA volunteers.”
Penn adds that CASA volunteers provide consistency in a period defined by chaos. “Children with CASA volunteers have a trusted adult to walk through this process with them,” Penn says. “When their placement changes, when their case worker changes, that CASA volunteer remains constant, always advocating for their best interests.”
CASA volunteer Courtney Boyle, who completed her training less than a year ago, says the reward of serving has outweighed any nervousness or hesitance she might have had. “I’ve always wanted to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves,” she said. “Being a CASA volunteer allows you to make a big impact in a child’s life. It’s very rewarding.”
To learn more, visit https://childadv.net/
