Steps to become a Volunteer Advocate:
1. Read the Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem description thoroughly.
2. Complete a Volunteer Application and Background Check Form and return it to our CASA office.
3. Attend a one hour personal interview with the Executive Director or Supervisor.
4. Agree to Criminal and CPS background checks.
5. When all of these steps are complete, you may be accepted into the CASA training program.
Background Requirements:
1. Must be 21 years of age.
2. Willing to commit at least one year of your time to a child's case.
3. Able to pass an extensive criminal background check.
4. Willing to attend an in-depth 30-hour training program and attend 12 hours of continuing educational trainings every year.
5. Able to interview a variety of individuals (parents, teachers, neighbors, etc.)
6. Able to effectively communicate orally and in writing.
7. Mature in dealing with emotional issues.
8. Willing to demonstrate sensitivity to cultural and ethnic differences.
Supervision by the CASA staff:
All CASA volunteers are closely supervised by the CASA staff, the Volunteer Supervisors and Executive Director. The Supervisors will attend every court hearing, mediation, child staffing, and most parent visits with the CASA Volunteer. The CASA Volunteer will attend child visits on their own time. The courts want to hear directly from the CASA Volunteer, and a CASA staff person is there to support and guide them through the Child Welfare and Legal System.
Monthly Time Requirements:
A CASA Volunteer Guardian Ad Litem will typically be required to volunteer at least 10 hours per month on a case. A child's case may last up to one year depending on the outcome of the case. The following represents an example of the typical meetings a CASA would have throughout the month:
1. Attend daytime court hearings with advance notice from the courts. Court hearings can last anywhere from 5-30 minutes.
2. Attend daytime mediations with the family, the mediator, the CPS (Child Protective Services) caseworker, and others to discuss the plans for the child(ren) in care. Mediations are usually 1 time per year and can last up to 4 hours.
3. Able to visit the child(ren) in their placement once a month. Visits with children are scheduled around the foster parent or group home or placement facility where the child temporarily resides. Children can be placed in homes located in Ellis and surrounding counties.
4. Able to observe at least two, 1-hour, daytime parent/child visitation sessions each month, at either the CPS office in Waxahachie or other designated location by the CPS office and are held during the daytime hours.
5. Able to visit with parents or other relatives at least 1-2 times per month.
6. Able to attend (2) Permanency Conferences or PC meetings regarding the progress of the children to whom you are assigned. These meetings are held during the day, at the CPS offices in Waxahachie and typically take place every six months and last up to 30 minutes.
7. Additional duties throughout the month are typically phone calls to the therapists or the children's school, and even the parent's attorneys, if necessary. At least half of the volunteer's duties must take place during the day, but the remainder can usually be taken care of in the evening or weekends.
8. It is important for the potential CASA Volunteer to have some flexibility in their daytime job so they may work their case.