Our Core Values: C.H.I.L.D
COMPASSION
We are a caring organization with compassionate and empathetic staff, board and advocates. We recognize that the children and families whom we serve have experienced significant trauma. With understanding and without judgment, we respectfully engage with our families and our child welfare system partners while honoring our cultural differences and diverse experiences.
HOPE
With the best interests of the child at the fore and best practices in action, we strive to change the trajectory of a child’s future by advocating for their safety, stability, overall health and well-being, and permanency. We believe that with the right interventions and supports, children who have suffered abuse and neglect can find the health, happiness, and safety every child deserves.
INTEGRITY
We at CASA SHaW always strive for excellence. We act with integrity in all aspects of our work – financially, interpersonally, in our casework, and with our community partners. We are accountable for our actions, we communicate openly and effectively, and we acknowledge our mistakes. Professionally, we continually educate ourselves as we update best practices and foster ethical development. We are good stewards of the mission and resources to which we have been entrusted.
LEADERSHIP
Whether dealing with families, colleagues, resource parents, donors or supporters, we work hard to build trust, foster open communication, and develop and maintain positive relationships. We ask for and offer collaboration with other stakeholders. We are committed to fostering initiatives that benefit the children we serve and freely share our intellectual resources with others. We take a leadership role wherever we can in an effort to help our children not just survive but thrive.
DEDICATION
Each staff member, board member, and advocate is dedicated to our child advocacy mission. We work collaboratively and diligently to provide each member of our team with the tools they need to succeed in their roles. We are committed to be thorough and objective fact finders who keep the child’s best interest at the heart of the work we do. We are committed to serving as the child’s advocate for as long as they need one throughout the foster care experience.
About CASA
When a foster care case begins, the courtroom is crowded with a judge, a representative from a foster care agency, biological parents, family members, attorneys, other courtroom staff and, of course, the child. Even though the child should be the priority in the room, the judges, caseworkers and service providers who determine the child’s future simply do not have adequate time to understand the specific needs of each and every child. By speaking for the child, CASA and our professionally trained community advocates ensure that the wishes and needs of the child are not overlooked by the many competing interests at play. CASA volunteers are the eyes and ears for the family court judge, providing an impartial and independent recommendation for the child.