MISSION, VISION, & VALUES
Our Mission
The mission of California CASA is to ensure that children and youth in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems have both a voice and the services they need to thrive. We achieve this by strengthening and empowering California’s network of local CASA programs and advocating for effective child welfare policies and practices.
Our Vision
Every child in the California child welfare and juvenile justice systems who needs advocacy will have the transformative support of a CASA volunteer.
Our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Pledge
California CASA pledges:
To educate and train our board members, staff, and CASA volunteers throughout the network and have the conversations about systemic racism, unconscious bias, dominant culture, white supremacy, color blindness, and any form of oppression that is affecting the children and families we serve.
To increase the diversity of our CASA staff members, board members, and volunteers so that CASA as a whole better reflects the racial and other identities of the children we serve.
To advocate for fairness and equity in every individual case to which we are assigned by the courts.
To advocate for and support relevant anti-racist policies in the California state legislature, California judiciary, with local government officials, and in state and local county child welfare and social services departments, as much as possible within our sphere of influence.
And to lead by example through our own policies, recruiting, decisions, and communications by being culturally responsive and inclusive of all identities.
We are committed to regular assessment of our pledge and our progress on this journey.
Our Values
COLLABORATION
We acknowledge that we are part of a greater community and work respectfully with local CASA programs and other partners to effectively carry out our mission.
INNOVATION
We embrace bold creativity to transform new ideas into tangible services and results for local CASA programs.
IMPACT
We are dedicated to supporting, empowering, and evaluating the impact of local CASA programs so that they perform at their highest level of advocacy for children and youth in foster care, and their families.
INCLUSIVENESS
We value, embrace, and respect the inclusion of all cultures, races, orientations, and ethnicities, treating everyone fairly and equitably.
JUSTICE
We believe that children and youth in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems deserve fair and just treatment, advocacy, and equitable opportunity.
Strategic Plan FY2024-FY2026
A new three-year strategic plan creates a path forward for California CASA to pursue three priorities:
Continue to support and expand the core CASA model.
Expand our scope of advocacy to recruit, train, and supervise CASAs to serve youth in the juvenile justice system.
Advocate for systemic change within the child welfare system.