PLATINUM2024

Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocate Association

We envision that all Missouri children have safe permanent homes free of abuse and neglect. Change a Child's Story.

aka Missouri CASA   |   Columbia, MO   |  http://www.mocasa.org

Mission

We support, improve, and grow local Court Appointed Special Advocate programs and lead advocacy efforts for abused and neglected children across Missouri.

Ruling year info

1996

Executive Director

Leanne Reese

Main address

1000 West Nifong Blvd. Building 4, Ste 201D

Columbia, MO 65203 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

43-1718389

NTEE code info

Children's and Youth Services (P30)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

Sign in or create an account to view Form(s) 990 for 2023, 2022 and 2021.
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Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Each day there are over 11,000 children in foster care in Missouri. Roughly 30% of these children have access to a CASA volunteer. We envision providing access to a CASA volunteer for all Missouri children who have experienced abuse or neglect. To achieve this vision, we work to establish CASA programs that are supported by key stakeholders and sustained by effective staff and well-trained CASA volunteers in all Missouri judicial circuits. The Missouri CASA Association exists to empower its local programs to provide best-interest advocacy for children in the foster care system who have experienced abuse and neglect. Our local programs cannot serve children without community support and sustainable financial resources. From a statewide perspective, these are the problems which we are hoping to address. From a local program perspective, we would like all children in the foster care system to have access to a CASA volunteer; this is a best-interest advocate for a child.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Missouri CASA Association

The Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocate Association's operating programs involve the coordination and facilitation of communication, information sharing, and networking among local programs; assistance to local communities or courts in developing new programs, and updating programs on current trends in child welfare and court improvement, as well as court decisions and legislation that impacts their work.

Population(s) Served
Children and youth

Where we work

Affiliations & memberships

National CASA/GAL Association for Children 2022

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of children and youth who received best-interest advocacy

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Missouri CASA Association

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Holding steady

Context Notes

These numbers were obtained from the annual reports submitted by our local programs to our national organization.

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

GOAL 1: Increase public awareness and build the CASA brand in Missouri.
Objectives:
1. Provide simple and effective CASA messaging.
2. Amplify volunteer recruitment and CASA awareness.
3. Cultivate stakeholder relationships to strengthen CASA's advocacy.
GOAL 2: Strengthen and develop CASA programs in Missouri.
Objectives:
1. Bolster local program operations for quality advocacy.
2. Maximize efforts for growth and expansion to serve more children.
3. Enhance data integrity and analyze outcomes to demonstrate CASA's impact.
GOAL 3: Lead Network with a Strong State Organization
Objectives:
1. Ensure effective governance.
2. Encourage continual improvement of program operations.
GOAL 4: Develop resources to fuel growth and sustainability.
Objectives:
1. Support local program financial resource development to help with growth and sustainability.
2. Expand statewide sources of funding.

CASA programs in Missouri have a unified goal: to provide best-interest advocacy for children in the foster care system who have experienced abuse or neglect. These children have faced life-changing traumas and require a child welfare system and community where their wants and needs are prioritized. Children with a CASA volunteer are more likely to obtain necessary services and resources to be safe, healthy, and successful during their time in the foster care system.

The Missouri CASA Association will continue to provide support, training, technical assistance, funding, and other resources to its 24 local programs throughout the state. Well-supported local programs are then empowered to engage with the community to recruit, screen, and train volunteers who will provide best-interest advocacy for children. Well-supported programs promote empowered staff and volunteers.

Studies show that one consistent adult presence in a child's life can mitigate lifelong complications due to chronic childhood trauma, such as chronic stress, depression, anxiety, and a wide array of physical health complications. CASA volunteers help children build resilience during their time in foster care that stays with them into teen- and adulthood.

Healthy and empowered children are vital members of our communities and are the parents, workers, and leaders of tomorrow. We are confident that our work with children not only improves individual well-being, but is also conducive to flourishing communities where trauma is reduced and people thrive.

Our organization has been in existence since 2005. We have a long track record of providing technical assistance to our local programs and we pride ourselves on the ability to listen to assess their needs, while also celebrating their many successes. We have a close relationship with our local program directors and communicate consistently to provide support.

Our organization currently has a collective 30 years of experience with CASA in both the state and local programs capacities. Our current staff are avid grant writers, experienced marketers, and effective leaders.

We have already begun work on the activities of our 2024-2026 Strategic Plan, which prioritizes effective messaging, empowered local programs, a strong state program, and financial resource development. We continue to gather feedback from our local programs and ensure that their voices are heard on our Board via a local program liaison.

We have also begun researching which data are necessary to demonstrate our successes and also help to improve our services.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We demonstrated a willingness to learn more by reviewing resources about feedback practice.
done We shared information about our current feedback practices.

  • How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?

    To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback

Financials

Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocate Association
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

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Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.

  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.

Missouri Court Appointed Special Advocate Association

Board of directors
as of 02/28/2024
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Allyson Cunningham

Lathrop GPM, LLP

Term: 2022 -

Ally Cunningham

Lathrop GPM, LLP

Laura O'Neil

Unicef

Melinda Mowrer

Kennett Public Schools

Deborah Depew

Medical Practice

Trent Ball

Nonprofit

Emily Little

University of Missouri

LaDawn Burnett

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP (BCLP)

Maddie McMillian-Green

Lathrop GPM, LLP

Dr. Fatima Gines, Ed.D

Avila University

Sheri Crist

Management (Ret.)

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 9/8/2022
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.

Leadership

The organization's leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
White/Caucasian/European
Gender identity
Female, Not transgender
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or Straight
Disability status
Person without a disability

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

Transgender Identity

Sexual orientation

Disability

No data

Equity strategies

Last updated: 09/08/2022

GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more

Data
  • We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
  • We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
  • We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
  • We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
  • We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
Policies and processes
  • We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
  • We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
  • We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.