CASA Advocate Trainings
CASA offers New Advocate training (in-person and web-based) several times throughout the year.
2024 In-Person Training Dates:
Dates coming soon. If interested now, please apply below.
What is a CASA Volunteer?
Advocate
Responsibilities
Qualifications
Court-appointed special advocate (CASA) volunteers advocate for the best-interests of children who have experienced abuse or neglect. Volunteers work with child welfare professionals, educators and service providers to ensure that judges have the information they need to make the most well-informed decisions for each child.
Qualifications
Responsibilities
Qualifications
- Age 21 or older
- Online Application and References
- Complete CASA Training Program
- Background Checks
- Sworn in by a Circuit Court Judge
Responsibilities
Responsibilities
Responsibilities
The CASA Volunteer will conduct an independent investigation of the case by:
- Reviewing all relevant records.
- Interviewing persons involved with the case.
- Regularly observing interactions between parent and child.
- Submitting reports to the court.
Commitment
Responsibilities
Responsibilities
CASA volunteers commit to spending 10-15 hours per month for the duration of one specific case (12 months on average). A volunteer’s commitment to seeing a case through until it closes ensures a consistent, reliable adult in a child’s life and a better chance for the child to reach a safe, permanent home.
Southeast CASA Program-Volunteers
CASA stand for Court Appointed Child Advocate
Southeast CASA Program seeks to promote and protect the best interests of abused and neglected children involved in court proceedings through the advocacy efforts of CASA volunteers. We train qualified adults to advocate in court for abused and neglected children.
The CASA volunteer has a Court Order appointing them as the advocate for the children in a specific Abuse & Neglect case. The volunteer's reports to the Court provide factual information about the best interests of the child, and any concerns there are about the parents ability to provide a safe home for their child/children. CASA gives a child a voice in court.
CASA volunteers have one case at a time, and the average time of a CASA case is 12 months. CASA does this advocacy work because no child should be invisible or unheard when decisions are being made about his or her permanent home.
Children receiving CASA advocacy services are less likely to re-enter foster care, have better school attendance, do better in school, are involved in more activities, develop better social skills, receive more services while in foster care, and are less likely to repeat the cycle of abuse and neglect with their own families some day.
National CASA
Southeast CASA is a member of the National CASA Association.
The mission of the National CASA Association is to support and promote court-appointed volunteer advocacy so that every abused or neglected child can be safe, establish permanence and have the opportunity to thrive.
Service Area
Southeast CASA provides child advocacy services to the abused and neglected children from Bon Homme, Clay, Turner, Union and Yankton counties who have been placed in foster care.