Texas CASA Mission
Texas CASA advocates for abused and neglected children in the court system through the development, growth and support of local CASA programs.
Position Statement
When home is no longer safe for a child, and the child must enter the foster care system, a judge may appoint a committed volunteer called a CASA or court appointed special advocate®. The volunteer’s focus is on that child, giving hope and help in guiding the child to a safe, permanent home.
The History of CASA
Texas CASA is part of a national volunteer movement that began over 25 years ago, when a judge in Seattle decided he needed to know more about the children whose lives were in his hands. The solution he started was using community volunteers as a "voice in court" for abused and neglected children. These Court Appointed Special Advocates™ (CASA) provided him with the detailed information he needed to safeguard the children's best interests and ensure that they were placed in safe, permanent homes as quickly as possible. The program was so successful that it was copied around the nation.
Today, the CASA movement has evolved into one of the largest volunteer organizations in the country. There are more than 900 CASA programs in operation - at least one in every state - and more than 57,000 trained volunteer advocates nationwide. In fiscal year 2008 in Texas, 5,259 CASA volunteers advocated for the best interests of 20,451 children in 203 counties.
The first CASA program in Texas began in Dallas in 1979. Texas CASA, which was formed in 1989, serves the 68 local CASA programs currently operating statewide by providing: funding; training; technical assistance; coordination for program expansion and development; and tools and strategies for raising public awareness of child abuse and the need for volunteer advocates.