CASA Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Organization Seeks Volunteers To Help Foster Care Children Navigate Court

An organization that helps foster children navigate the legal system in 10 West Virginia counties needs volunteers.

Western Regional Court Appointed Special Advocates or, CASA helps children in Boone, Cabell, Calhoun, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Mason, Putnam, Roane and Wayne counties find someone to serve as the child’s voice throughout court proceedings.

Program Director, Kim Runyon Wilds said no that special experience is required and the organization provides training.

“We do not have enough advocates for every child, unfortunately,” Wilds said. “That’s why we are trying to get the word out about this program. We have almost 900 children that are waiting for one of our volunteers to be assigned to them just in our 10 county service area.”

Volunteers must be at least 21 years old and be able to pass a background check, including a child protective services check.

“After they get all of the background check stuff done, they’ve completed every chapter of training, then we swear them in with an oath of confidentiality with a circuit court judge,” Wilds said. “So once all of that is done, they’re ready to actually be an advocate for children who have experienced trauma.”

Wilds said each case is different. Some children who are involved in court because of abuse and neglect are assigned a Child Protective Service (CPS) social worker, and a guardian ad litem who is the attorney for the child.

Wilds said while CPS workers and guardians ad litem have large caseloads, CASA volunteers have one or two cases on average. The organization serves about 450 children each year.

“They have the ability, and frankly, the time to be able to do regular home visits, check in with the family and review records,” Wilds said. “Get a complete story of the family’s history, what’s going on, why is the family in court, and then they can then develop a relationship with the child. See what the child wants to happen in the case and see what the child’s best interests are, which will be the opinion of the advocate.”

According to Wilds, children with CASA volunteers spend less time in foster care on average and they’re half as likely to re-enter the foster care system.

“Long term outcomes for children who have been appointed a CASA volunteer are good, (they are) less likely to enter right back into foster care, less likely to drop out of school,” Wilds said. “Having the CASA volunteer, or even a consistent, caring and protective adult in a child’s life is enough to change their story. They’re changing a child’s story by helping a child advocating for a child just being a protective adult in a child’s life.”

Wilds said CASA’s ultimate goal is the reunification of the family, if at all possible.

“We want to get to know them and the environment they’re currently in along with where they came from, but our primary goal is reunification,” Wilds said. “If it can be safely achieved, we want the kids back with their parents, if that can happen.”

Interested individuals can contact CASA via their Facebook page, by calling 304-523-9587, ext. 307, or by emailing Wilds directly at kwilds@TEAMWV.org.

Program Helping Babies, Mothers With Opioid Dependence Receives More Funding

The program also works to connect mothers with addiction recovery programs, education, housing, and job opportunities. The program has expanded the follow-up care babies born with NAS receive after they are discharged from hospital.

West Virginia has continued to see a rise in babies born dependent on opioids.

To counter the problem, the West Virginia University Center for Excellence in Disabilities received $1.5 million from the US Department of Health and Human Services to implement services for mothers and babies facing opioid dependence. The money will extend the five-year-old program another three years.

The center works to reduce the number of babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) as well as aiding in the recovery for babies and mothers by connecting families with already existing resources that help in addiction recovery, health services, and social services using a patient navigator.

Program Director D. Lesley Cottrell says the patient navigator comes from the community and can relate to the lived experience of mothers and family members and can connect them with providers and resources in the area.

“They are key to connecting all the different providers across the different settings. If they notice that there’s a need, they can reach out to find a provider that provides that service,” Cottrell said.

The program introduces patient navigators at birth in the hospital.

“The patient navigator model works best when that patient navigator is employed within the birthing hospital for a couple of reasons,” Cottrell said. “So, they’re there at the birth of the infant. They can make those pivotal connections while mom and family are there. It happens before if there is a separation of mom and baby, for any reason. And they can be there to work with mom, and even the foster parent who might come into play.”

“We really want to follow up and not just with our child health visits, but in other ways,” Cottrell said. “So, with occupational therapy, if that’s needed- with speech, if that’s needed- With nutrition. This follow-up clinic would bring in an interdisciplinary group of providers to work with the family and continue to connect them to the needs as the baby develops.”

Cottrell also said that the program does not just focus on one baby but stays in contact with mothers in between babies. It also stays in contact with mothers after they have stopped using substances in case of possible relapse.

Cottrell said that the center helps extend time periods in between giving birth again by aiding in family planning for mothers.

The program works with WVU’s Children’s Hospital, Preston Memorial’s Medication Assisted Treatment Program, Court Appointed Special Advocates Incorporated (CASAINC), WVU behavioral medicine, WVU Pediatrics, and the WVU School of Nursing as well as other national, state, and local programs.

Growing Awareness of Need for Child Advocates

Court Appointed Special Advocate programs operate in many West Virginia counties, serving the victims of child abuse and neglect. As county program directors, board members and volunteers gather in Wheeling this week for an annual meeting, they’ll get to know Tracy Taylor, the new Executive Director of the program’s state umbrella organization. Taylor hopes to foster program stability and expansion.

Because, if they’re lucky, child abuse and neglect victims in West Virginia get their own special advocate: a volunteer, appointed by a judge, to watch over them as they make their way through the confusing – and often scary – court and human services systems. Tracy Taylor says these special advocates – “CASAs” – can make the difference for a child victim.

“The volunteers we have, they want to be involved in some way to help a child in need.” – Tracy Taylor

But most victims aren’t so lucky. Not every county has a CASA program and those that do don’t have enough volunteers to provide an advocate for each eligible child.

Child abuse and neglect victims face a maze of unfamiliar processes and a sea of unfamiliar adults – all of whom have an important role to play in addressing their situation:

There are law enforcement officers, health and human service workers, therapists, doctors, foster parents and attorneys. As a case winds its way through the system, those adults often come and go. The CASA may be the one constant adult presence in the child’s life.

Taylor says volunteers are not there to bring legal or social work expertise to the situation – but to provide a constant presence for the child and a special perspective to the court.

“You deal with DHHR, both parents’ attorney, guardian ad litem – the attorney appointed for the child, therapist or special assistance offered you get a full understanding of what the situation is and ultimately what you offer to the court and to the judge is a lay opinion of what’s in the best interest of this child.”

Taylor, a native of Fairmont, also volunteered as a CASA for nearly two years while going to school full-time at Fairmont State University. After earning her undergraduate degree, she went on to complete law school and worked in the legal profession for a number of years out of state. She has returned home and is excited to get started on the challenge of stabilizing the West Virginia CASA Association.

The county CASA programs operate independently, within National CASA guidelines. The role of the state organization is to provide technical support and training to the local programs and to help promote CASA across the state.

A big goal is to expand CASA’s reach. Taylor sees large unserved areas in West Virginia and would like to expand.

“We need a program in the southern counties of the state. This is Logan, Mingo, McDowell – high need area – but no program.”

Taylor has ideas for statewide fundraising and wants to establish a fund to provide seed money for expansion into new counties and to provide emergency assistance to existing programs.

Taylor sees another important role – helping the county programs network more effectively to support each other.

“It’s not just the folks down in Jackson County or up in Keyser that are working – you have a whole network of support here to help you with whatever you’re struggling with at your local program.”

Networking more effectively… Taylor sees this week’s statewide conference as a great opportunity to move that goal forward.

*In the interest of full disclosure, reporter Sarah Lowther Hensley has served as a Court Appointed Special Advocate and currently serves on the board of directors of the CASA program in Marion County.