Become a CASA Volunteer Advocate

What Does a CASA Volunteer Advocate Do?

A Court Appointed Special Advocate, or CASA volunteer, is a trained community member appointed by a judge to advocate for the best interests of a child who has experienced abuse or neglect.

CASA volunteers provide the court with consistent, independent, and child-focused information throughout the child’s case. While caseworkers, attorneys, placements, and service providers may change, the CASA volunteer strives to remain a steady presence for the child.

CASA Volunteers:

• Get to know the child.
  CASA volunteers spend time with the child, listen to their concerns, learn about their experiences, and understand their individual needs, strengths, culture, relationships, and wishes.

• Visit the child regularly.
  Volunteers maintain consistent contact with the child wherever the child is living, including foster homes, relative placements, residential facilities, or other approved settings.

• Build a dependable relationship.
  By showing up consistently, listening without judgment, and keeping the focus on the child, CASA volunteers can become a trusted and stable presence during an uncertain time.

• Gather information about the case.
  CASA volunteers review relevant records and speak with people involved in the child’s life, which may include parents, relatives, foster parents, teachers, counselors, medical providers, caseworkers, attorneys, and other professionals.

• Identify the child’s needs.
  Volunteers consider the child’s safety, health, education, emotional well-being, family connections, cultural identity, placement stability, and access to appropriate services.

• Learn the child’s wishes.
  CASA volunteers listen carefully to what the child wants and ensure that the child’s wishes are communicated to the court. The child’s wishes may not always be the same as the volunteer’s best-interest recommendations, so both are reported clearly.

• Advocate for the child’s best interests.
  After gathering information, the volunteer makes independent recommendations focused on what will best support the child’s safety, well-being, permanency, and long-term stability.

• Prepare written court reports.
  Before court hearings, CASA volunteers submit objective reports that summarize their observations, relevant case information, the child’s expressed wishes, areas of concern, progress made, and recommendations for the court’s consideration.

• Attend court hearings and meetings.
  Volunteers may attend hearings, family team meetings, school meetings, case-planning meetings, and other proceedings related to the child’s care.

• Maintain confidentiality.
  Volunteers protect the child’s private information and follow strict confidentiality requirements, court rules, program policies, and professional boundaries.

• Remain involved until the case concludes.
  Whenever possible, the same CASA volunteer stays with the child throughout the court case, providing continuity and helping ensure that the child’s needs do not become lost within a complex system.