Atlanta Court Appointed Special Advocates, Inc.
Serving All of Fulton County's Abused and Neglected Children
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
There is a need to advocate for abused and neglected children in Fulton County's court system. The court system can be very difficult for families to navigate. The average child will spend more than two years in foster care and those children will change homes an average of three times. Thus, Atlanta CASA provides the support to ensure that children and families do not get lost in the overburdened legal and social service system or languish in foster care. With the onset of COVID-19, Atlanta CASA has been resilient to ensure it continues its mission of advocacy. In its most pivotal moments, Atlanta CASA implemented virtual advocacy by becoming "phy-gital" (physically digital) in order to continue child visits. CASA services are based on a national, standards-based, replicable model that utilizes screened and trained community volunteers to provide individualized advocacy for children and families involved in juvenile court dependency proceedings as the result of abuse and neglect.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Atlanta CASA
Our programs seek to find safe and permanent homes for young victims in foster care (age 0 – 18) as quickly as possible while ensuring that all of the child’s needs are met for healthy development. As a result, it has become an integral part of the child welfare system.
WE ACCOMPLISH OUR MISSION BY • Training and recruiting volunteers to serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates • Supervising volunteers through Advocacy Coordinators • Advocating for abused and neglected children in the court system • Building awareness and support in the local, national and global community.
Onward Upward
Onward Upward is a curriculum designed to give volunteers a solid base of knowledge and skills to advocate on behalf of youths between the ages of 12 and 18. The training provides an in depth exploration of topics such as relationship building with older youths, the "possible selves" concept, and working with youths as partners in transition and independent living planning. This type of training has and continues to be effective in supporting youths that age out of foster care.
Education Advocacy
Education Advocacy is an initiative by the Atlanta CASA program to ensure the specialized needs of children in foster care are properly addressed through placement changes. Advocates are trained to identify and address impediments to education such as learning disabilities, misdiagnosis, and other special needs. Advocates are trained in the Federal Laws impacting children's educational needs and services. Advocates participate in educational meetings and court hearings advocating for the needs necessary to produce the best outcomes for children.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
National CASA/GAL Program 2022
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Total number of abused and neglected children served.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
Atlanta CASA
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Atlanta CASA advocacy resulted in 131 children achieving permanency in FY22 and 141 children in FY23.
Number of new Volunteer Advocates trained
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
Atlanta CASA
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Hours of Volunteer Advocacy
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
Atlanta CASA
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Last fiscal year CASA volunteers contributed 48480 advocacy hours on behalf of child victims. Their efforts saved the county $1,541,664.00.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
It is the goal of Atlanta CASA to ensure that children who have been abused and neglected find a safe and permanent home as expeditiously as possible. Atlanta CASA strives to reunite the child with its biological family. Therefore, the focus is to identify any needs of the family, any gaps in services, and ensure that the family has an opportunity to have their children returned home. In the Atlanta CASA service area, during state fiscal year 2020 and in the midst of a pandemic, Atlanta CASA provided volunteer advocates for approximately 1/3 of the abused and neglected children age 18 and under referred to foster care. To achieve the goal of providing a volunteer advocate for every child, we have to triple our volunteer base. With our loyal supporters, community and partners, Atlanta CASA is committed to achieving this goal over the next 5 years.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Increase number of children served and permanency outcomes by ....
I. Increased fundraising and diversify funding streams
II. Increase organizational capacity and infrastructure
III. Increased volunteer recruitment and retention
IV. Increased staff recruitment and retention
V. Build Community, Court and DFACS relationships
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Atlanta CASA is governed by a diverse, volunteer group of leaders who are committed to CASA's mission. The paid CASA staff are educated professionals; the Chief Executive Officer, Program Administrator, Program Manager, Community Outreach Coordinator, Training Coordinator, Lead Advocacy Coordinator, and a team of Advocacy Coordinators. The Community Outreach Coordinator is the initial face of Atlanta CASA in the community. This position recruits for volunteers. The Training Coordinator is responsible for ensuring candidates meet the requirements to becoming an Advocate by overseeing the 40-hour training workshops as well as facilitating additional in-service training opportunities as required by our national organization. The Lead Advocacy Coordinator provides support to the Advocacy Coordinators who provide volunteer advocates with on-going professional support, consultation and supervision. The duties of the Advocacy Coordinators include but are not limited to providing background and contact information on cases, recommending alternatives in complicated cases, reviewing written court reports, and documenting the activities and progress of the cases. The Program Manager supervises the Advocacy Coordinators, documents service deliveries for monthly and quarterly statistical reports and supports the Chief Executive Officer as needed. Each of the foregoing ensures that the Chief Executive Officer and Program Administrator have the information needed to ensure resources are in place for successful operations. Atlanta CASA is affiliated with both the National CASA Association and Georgia CASA.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
A foster child with a CASA volunteer is four times more likely to graduate from high school than foster children without an adult to guide them. Children who have CASA volunteers are far less likely to be re-abused. CASA intervention stops the cycle of abuse that’s often passed on from generation to generation. In court, lawyers know the law and have dozens of files on child victims. In the Department of Family and Children Services, social workers know the policies and have dozens of files on abused and neglected children. In Atlanta CASA, volunteers have one file that may have sibling groups; but the CASA knows the child(ren) in that one file and can effectively advocate in that child's best interest.
Last year in Fulton County more than 1000 abused and neglected children were removed from their homes. Atlanta CASA served 385 of those children which means more than 60% of child victims went without an adult to speak for them during judicial proceedings. Atlanta CASA volunteers are typically assigned to the most serious cases of abuse and maltreatment. In 2021, 279 Atlanta CASA volunteers contributed more than 65,000 advocacy hours on behalf of those 385 child victims.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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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,
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild 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.
Atlanta Court Appointed Special Advocates, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 02/01/2024
Joseph Handy
Clear Water Aquarium
Term: 2020 - 2023
Stephen E Marion
Business Solutions Consulting
Merlin Knight
Magic Waste Valet
Gwendolyn Lusk
UPS (Retired)
Leyla Compani
Welcome America
Andrea Hayward
UPS (Retired)
Dominique Cooper
DDC Consulting
Joseph Handy
Clear Water Aquarium
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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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? No
Organizational demographics
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
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/26/2020GuideStar 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
- 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.
- 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.