As part of March’s National Social Work Month celebration, CASA for the Cross Timbers Area recognizes and appreciates thesocialworkers,advocates, and others who devote their careers to bettering the lives of others.
Social workers strive to build a stronger community for all people, and CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) is a proud partner in the effort to create a brighter future for all children and families involved in the child welfare system.
“Social workers are the lifeblood of the child welfare system, from caseworkers to therapists, to child placing agency staff,” said Mindy Wooley, executive director of CASA for the Cross Timbers Area. “Collaboration and partnership are key values in the social work field, and we share those values here at CASA.”
One specific way CASA volunteers and caseworkers in Texas are working together to improve the lives of children and their families is through Collaborative Family Engagement (CFE), a statewide Family Finding partnership with DFPS that creates and strengthens supportive lifetime networks around children and their families. Studies have found that one of the strongest indicators of child well-being is the number of present, caring and reliable adults in the child’s life.
With CFE, CASA volunteers, DFPS and others work together to build an adult support system for these children and their parents – consisting of family members, family friends, teachers, mentors, neighbors, coaches and others – that will last even after the case is closed.
“CASA volunteers’ primary focus is family reunification for the children they serve whenever safe and possible,” said Wooley. “Working together to create and strengthen a supportive network for children and their parents helps increase the likelihood for sustainable reunifications to happen.”
As CFE is rolling out across Texas, the child welfare system is also undergoing major statewide reform – reform that will require more communication and collaboration between CASA, DFPS and other groups than ever before. In 2017, the state began transitioning to Community-Based Care , a sweeping system transformation that is shifting foster care and case management services from the state to private, nonprofit contractors.
“As Community-Based Care rolls out across the state and more and more agencies get involved, we see a lot of opportunity – both to forge new relationships and strengthen current ones,” said Wooley. “In the spirit of National Social Work Month, CASA CTA and our dedicated volunteers will continue to focus on the strengths of those we serve – in every conversation, every new partnership we forge, every action, and every case.”
You don’t need to be a social worker to be a CASA volunteer.
You just need to have the desire to make a difference – just like our colleagues in the social work field.
For more information about CASA and what CASA volunteers do, visit CASACTA.org or call our local office at 254.965.6610 —submitted