The CASA Movement—How It Began
In 1976, a Seattle Juvenile Court Judge, David Soukup, saw a recurring problem in his courtroom: Insufficient information for making the right decisions to help children in the court and foster-care system grow into mature and happy adults. ”You can’t walk away and leave them at the courthouse at 4 o’clock,” he said. “You wonder, ‘Do I really know everything I should? Is this really right?’”
To ensure he was getting all the facts to represent the long-term welfare of each child, Judge Soukup conceived an idea that would change America’s judicial procedure and the lives of nearly two million children. He obtained funding to recruit and train community volunteers to step into courtrooms on behalf of the children, calling them Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs).
CASA Timeline
National CASA Association
Based in Seattle, National CASA Association was founded in 1982 to support the emerging nationwide presence of CASA chapters. Leading continued growth of the CASA network, National CASA now represents more than 950 local CASA chapters throughout the United States, including Washington D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands, providing support for new programs, technical assistance, training, fundraising, media and public awareness. Nearly 87,000 of its CASA volunteers serve more than one-quarter million children each year. However, 430,000 children are still waiting for their volunteer Advocate.
Illinois Association of CASA
Based in Bloomington, IL, Illinois Association of CASA was founded in 1993 to champion children by supporting, training, uniting and growing local CASA chapters throughout the state. Illinois CASA has also begun engaging in legislative advocacy to better enable CASA volunteers to serve children through the promotion of public policies.
CASA of the Tenth Judicial Circuit (formerly CASA of Peoria County)
In 2003, Illinois CASA approached Chief Justice John Barra about creating a new CASA program in Peoria County. The initial steering committee established a 501(c)(3) corporation, started fundraising and recruited the first Board of Directors, which hired an Executive Director and opened the office in 2005. Judge Barra selected the “Friend of the Court” model for CASA of Peoria County (now CASA of the Tenth), which has thrived under steady leadership for the past 16 years. Today, it serves children in Peoria, Tazewell, Marshall, Putnam and Stark Counties.