COURT APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES OF OCEAN COUNTY INC

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Ocean County in New Jersey advocating on behalf of abused, neglected, and abandoned children in foster care. CASA of Ocean County, Inc. is a non profit that trains volunteer advocates to speak up for abused and neglected foster children as they navigate their way through the NJ Family Court system. Become a volunteer today! Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Ocean County, Inc. is an independent, non-profit organization, whose mission is to advocate for the best interest of vulnerable children in foster care that have been removed from their homes due to abuse and neglect. The vision of CASA of Ocean County is to provide a CASA Volunteer for every foster child in Ocean County, New Jersey. CASA of Ocean County is an affiliate of the National CASA Program and an affiliate member of CASA of New Jersey that provides technical support and training to this organization. The role of the organization is to recruit, screen, train and supervise every-day concerned citizens from the community to serve as a CASA Volunteer. Our CASA program serves the entire Ocean County area. We work only with abused and neglected population of children in out-of-home placement that have come before the Ocean County Family Court. The CASA Volunteer serves as the child’s voice in court and is committed to moving the child towards a safe and permanent home. In order to properly define and address the needs of our abused and neglected child population, CASA works closely with the Family Court Division and the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (formerly DYFS). The judges in Ocean County have pledged their full support of the CASA program. A child in foster care, by no fault of their own, becomes a part of a very complicated Child Welfare System, and they are taken away from much more than their home and parents/siblings. When an abused child is placed in foster care they are assigned multiple case workers, a law guardian and a Children in Court Judge. A CASA Volunteer is appointed by the Judge on the most complicated cases to ensure the child’s medical, educational, and emotional needs are met while in foster care. CASA provides volunteers with 30 hours of training and ongoing supervision while they assist each child. Volunteers commit to 20 hours a month in volunteer service to make child visits, attend meetings, appear in court, and speak up for the child as they navigate the child welfare system. A CASA Volunteer is the one compassionate, consistent and caring advocate that will make an investigation into the changes involving the child’s life. The volunteer will prepare court reports to the Judge with recommendations that will assist the Judge as they are making the best decisions on behalf of the child. The CASA Volunteer serves as the child’s voice in court that is often unheard. A foster child faces a multitude of problems while in foster care due to the lack of integration and coordination of efforts and services that exists inside and outside of the Family Court System. This directly contributes to delays in case handling and decision making that are not optimal for the child who is waiting for their forever home. Too often, Child Placement Review Boards, Family Court Judges, Division Case Managers, attorneys and law guardians that are involved in permanency hearings do not share information. This further contributes to children waiting in foster care while lingering court proceedings extend long periods of time. Research findings report that a foster child with a CASA of their own will have reduced time in the court system by up to 12 months. Not to mention, the CASA ensures health records are transferred, educational needs are being met, basic needs such as adequate clothing and food are given and overall the volunteer is working to improve the child has a better quality of life.