The Court Appointed Special Advocates program of Carbon and Emery counties needs a large increase in volunteers to provide a voice for children involved in the court system, advocating for their best interests.
The Guardian ad Litem of Carbon and Emery counties is responsible for determining the best interests of children involved in divorces, child neglect and abuse cases and paternity suits. With 168 children in the caseload, the Guardian ad Litem meets with the kids at least every six months, but in some cases, more attention may need to be given to children involved. That is where Court Appointed Special Advocates are utilized.
Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASAs, are trained volunteers who work with kids who have been abused or neglected and are involved with the court system, most of whom are in foster care.
“They gather information, they make sure court orders are being followed, they make sure visits are happening and then they report back to the Guardian ad Litem and the court on progress or areas that they see need some attention or services that may be needed,” said Kerrie Alton, the CASA coordinator for Carbon and Emery counties who is responsible for recruiting and training CASA volunteers.
CASA volunteers are assigned to one or two cases at a time, and meet with the kids involved in a case at least biweekly.
“They just develop a really close relationship with [the child] and they become someone that the child can trust, so the volunteer speaks for them and advocates for them,” said Alton.
While there are currently 168 kids that the Guardian ad Litem is representing in court cases, only 12 are represented by seven CASA volunteers, which is just 14 percent of the caseload. A large increase in CASA volunteers is needed in order to adequately serve the children of Carbon and Emery counties. Volunteers come from “all walks of life” Alton explained, and are only required to be 21 years old and be able to pass a background check. Once approved, CASA volunteers go through 32 hours of training before being assigned to a case.
“[The training] reviews abuse and neglect, the issues that come up with abuse and neglect… and goes through the court process, introduces them to the court process and how a case is referred and how it moves through the court process,” said Alton. “There’s also training in there, ways to communicate and work as a team, because you are working with case workers and attorneys and the judge.”
CASA volunteers are also asked to give a one year commitment, as most court cases last about 12 months, and are asked to commit 5-10 hours per month.
“These kids are used to so many adults in and out of their lives that we ask for the CASA to be that one consistent person who follows them until their case closes,” explained Alton. “It’s up to the CASA volunteer if they wanted to remain in contact once the case was closed, but they would do so not as a volunteer.”
Last year in Utah, over 700 volunteers served 1,299 children and donated 29,000 hours to advocating for children involved in the court system.
“Every day I get to see the benefit of having a CASA volunteer on a case, just the positive impact that they make for a child emotionally or with their stability,” said Alton. “There are great benefits to having a volunteer on a case.”
For more information on becoming a CASA volunteer, please visit UtahCASA.org.
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