CASA -- Court Appointed Special Advocates

I heard an interesting presentation the other week at a county-wide meeting of superintendents. The executive director of the organization CASA -- Court Appointed Special Advocates -- spoke about her program.

CASA provides volunteer advocates for the abused and neglected children of Gloucester County.

CASAs are trained volunteers, appointed by the court to investigate specific cases and report their findings and recommendations. CASA was only able to serve 97 children of the 900 children with cases of child abuse and neglect in 2008 due to a shortage of volunteers.

Volunteers complete thirty hours of initial training plus twelve hours of continuing education per year and are asked to give a minimum of ten hours per month for investigation, communication, and reporting. They are also asked to appear in court on the child's behalf and present their findings to the court.

There was a sense that this may be a wonderful volunteer effort for a retired teacher. Obviously, if anyone has the time and interest, they would welcome the contact.

• CASA serves Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem counties and can be found at www.cumberlandcasa.com.

• Deanna L. Davis, Executive Director, can be reached at 856-459-0061 or dldavis@cumberlandcasa.com.