Mission
CASA for Kids provides court appointed volunteer advocacy for children who have experienced abuse or neglect in the counties we are assigned in the Second and Fourth Judicial Court Circuits.
CASA for Kids belongs to a nationwide network of over 900 locally based Court Appointed Special Advocates® (CASA) programs that recruit, train, and support citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of children who have experienced abuse and neglect in juvenile court.
When a family is experiencing crisis and chaos, their children might be placed in foster care. Foster care can be an incredible challenging experience for any child. Children are removed from their familiar surroundings and placed in a new home, often separated from siblings. They are thrust into a system that is designed to protect them, but it can also be confusing and isolating. That's where a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer comes in - offering support, consistency and most importantly, a voice for these children.
This highly trained CASA volunteer is someone from the child’s community. Their responsibility is to get to know the child, their parents, their family and everyone else involved in the case. A volunteer will advocate for the child’s safety, permanency and well-being while in foster care. Volunteer Advocates—appointed directly by the Judge—offer attorneys and judges the critical information they need to ensure that each child’s rights and needs are being attended to while in foster care.
CASA for Kids is a locally run program that serves foster children in Clay, Clinton, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette, Franklin, Hamilton, Jasper, Marion, Wayne and White Counties. CASA for Kids serves over 50% of children in foster care in our service area and continues to strive for 100%.
History
In 1977, a Seattle juvenile court Judge who was concerned about making drastic decisions with insufficient information conceived the idea of citizen volunteers gathering this crucial information to speak up in the courtroom for the best interests of children who have experienced abuse and neglect. This program eventually grew to be implemented in almost every U.S. state.
Locally, CASA of South Central, serving Clinton and Marion Counties, began steps towards regionalization in fall of 2023 to merge with CASA of Effingham County, including an expansion into Clay, Fayette and Jasper counties. In July 2024 a favorable vote by all boards to widen the merge to include CASA of Franklin and Hamilton Counties occurred. Final documentation of the full merge was submitted and accepted by the Secretary of State Office in late December 2024. CASA for Kids has since expanded services to include Edwards, Wayne and White Counties.
All three boards believe regionalization allows CASA's mission work to be done efficiently and effectively when maximizing resources and best supporting our talented staff and dedicated volunteers across southern Illinois. Serving more children and youth in rural communities who have experienced abuse and neglect is top priority.
Visit National CASA/GAL Association for Children and Illinois CASA to learn more about the larger Court Appointed Special Advocate network.
