Speak up for Children - Make a Positive Difference
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program volunteers are ordinary people doing extraordinary work for abused, neglected, and abandoned children and youth in foster care. CASA Volunteer Advocates are appointed by a juvenile court judge to advocate one-on-one providing a powerful voice for a child or youth during their uncertain journey in the foster care system. Support Volunteers, such as CASA Tutors, meet weekly with children and youth in our program, providing high quality, consistent, and accessible educational support.
CASA of Contra Costa County will provide you with the training you need to be a successful volunteer.
CASA Volunteer Advocates are sworn officers of the court and share the willingness and ability to commit a minimum of one year, and at least 15-20 hours a month, to a child or youth in foster care.
CASA Tutors share the willingness to commit a minimum of one school year, and at least 6-12 hours a month, to a child or youth in foster care.
You must be 21 or older to apply.
STEP 1: Sign up for an Online Informational Session
CASA Informational Sessions will help you understand what it means to be a CASA Program volunteer. Attending an Informational Session is required before submitting your application for either position.
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NOVEMBER |
| Thursday, November 21 from 2-3 PM, REGISTER |
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DECEMBER |
| Tuesday, December 3 from 6-7 PM, REGISTER |
| Tuesday, December 10 from 2-3 PM, REGISTER |
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JANUARY |
| Thursday, January 9 from 2-3 PM, REGISTER |
| Thursday, January 21 from 6-7 PM, REGISTER |
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FEBRUARY |
| Thursday, February 6 from 2-3 PM, REGISTER |
| Tuesday, February 18 from 6-7 PM, REGISTER |
STEP 2: Excited to be a CASA volunteer?
Application
After you attend an Informational Session, you will receive an application and reference inquiry via email from our Recruitment Coordinator. The application will require 10 - 15 minutes of uninterrupted time to complete.
Reference Inquiry
You will be asked to provide three references. References may be co-workers, friends, neighbors, or others who have known you for at least two years. If you are currently employed, one of your references must be your employer. Family members or intimate partners are not acceptable references.
When we receive your reference list, we will email each of them our reference questionnaire and notify you as we receive their confidential responses. Please do not ask your references to submit recommendation letters as we must have them complete our standard form.
Once we receive your application and reference list, we will contact you to schedule an interview. Upon successful completion of your interview, we will work with you to conduct your background screening before training begins.
STEP 3: You're Almost There
You've successfully completed the interview and screening process.
The next step is Volunteer Initial Training or Support Volunteer Initial Training. Trainings are held on Zoom and include pre-class reading, homework, and assessments.
STEP 4: Start Advocating
Choose a child or youth. Our case management staff will work with you to select a child or youth on our waitlist who will benefit from your skills and experience. A trusting and positive volunteer-child relationship will be the foundation of your success.
Tax ID 94-2897531
