Two New Virtual Opportunities to Become a CASA Volunteer Announced
Lexington, Ky. (Aug. 13, 2020) - CASA of Lexington has scheduled two additional rounds of online volunteer training this fall in response to a growing number of people who want to advocate for abused and neglected children.
The trainings will begin on Sept. 21 and Oct. 12. New volunteers will complete the 30 hours of work in November and then be sworn in as CASA advocates.
The new volunteers will be graduating at a time when the need for their services is greater than ever. The COVID-19 pandemic has added stress to the lives of many people, increasing the risk for child abuse or neglect. Current pandemic restrictions, while essential for public health and safety, are also expected to result in a wave of new child abuse and neglect cases. As restrictions are lifted, more eyes will be on children again to notice when something is wrong.
CASA volunteers are trained observers who are sworn to confidentiality and appointed to cases of child abuse and neglect by family court judges. They develop friendships with the children they are assigned and interview adults in the children's lives. Then, they provide reports to the judge on their case that provides a complete picture of each child's situation, allowing the judge to make more informed decisions.
On one recent CASA case, a CASA volunteer identified a communication barrier for a child that was leading to behavior issues and proposed a solution no one else on the case had thought of.
"If it weren't for the CASA volunteer, I really don't think this would have come to surface as strongly as it did," the judge on the child's case said. "When I read that CASA report it was like a light bulb went on in my brain."
The child is now getting assistance to overcome the communication barrier and things are looking up.
"Thank God we had the CASA in there," the judge said. "The CASA volunteers bring a very strong voice and they bring our attention to things we need to be paying attention to."
CASA of Lexington's "guided learning" online training format includes seven two-hour group learning sessions held over Zoom, as well as homework participants complete before the group sessions. The training prepares participants to be effective advocates by covering topics such as child development, mental health, poverty, substance abuse, domestic violence, working with LGBTQ youth, writing court reports and understanding the court process.
Prospective advocates who want to start training on Sept. 21 should apply at by Sept. 14 at www.casaoflexington.org/advocates. This training has two time slots available: 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. or 2-4 p.m. on Sept. 21 and 23; Oct. 7, 14, 21 and 28; and Nov. 4.
Prospective advocates who want to start training on Oct. 12 should apply by Oct. 5. This training's time slot is 6-8 p.m. on Oct. 12, 15, 22 and 29; and Nov. 5, 12 and 19.
Court observation, a final interview and an official graduation ceremony, all of which will also be held virtually, will be scheduled at a later date or individually with each prospective volunteer.
If none of these times work for a prospective volunteer, CASA of Lexington is always working to schedule more trainings. Please call our office at (859) 246-4313 or email bkleppinger@casaoflexington.org and ask to be notified of future training opportunities.
The 30-hour pre-service training is often one of the biggest time challenges for those interested in becoming a CASA volunteer. The online training format helps make it easier for many to complete a substantial portion of the training on their own time. It's also a beneficial option for people who want to be an advocate in Scott, Bourbon or Woodford counties, because they do not need to commute to Lexington for training sessions.
MORE INFO
If you have any questions or would like more info, you can visit www.casaoflexington.org, call our office at (859) 246-4313 or email bkleppinger@casaoflexington.org. You can also like CASA of Lexington on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @CASAofLexington.