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The mission of Washington State CASA is to support member CASA/GAL programs in providing trained volunteer advocates for abused and neglected children in the court system.

The Washington State Association of Court Appointed Special Advocate/Guardian ad Litem Programs (CASA/GAL), founded in 1988, provides technical support and training to CASA/VGAL programs in Washington State, their staff and volunteers. The local programs are court-administered, stand-alone non-profits, established under umbrella agencies, or tribal court affiliated. The Association is registered as a 501(c) (3).

Services:
Washington State CASA provides the following services to CASA programs in the State of Washington:

• Volunteer recruitment and retention information
• Program data collection, analysis and dissemination
• Technical support for data collection at the program level
• Documentation of best practices
• Management and supervision consultation and training
• Annual regional meetings (6)
• Annual Washington State CASA Conference
• Program manager training and consultation
• Training materials and manuals
• Advocacy with the legislature and other public and private agencies for improvements to the child welfare system
• Advocacy with the legislature for State funding to CASA programs
• Monitoring and response to proposed legislation which might restrict CASA volunteers’ ability to represent the best interests of the child
• Media search for child-welfare and advocacy articles as resource to programs
• Website and 1-800 volunteer inquiry referrals and compilation
• Research reports on compliance with statutes and other volunteer program management issues
• Funding for special projects
• Networking and information exchange regarding common program issues
• Statewide promotion including coordination of the annual April CASA Cares campaign
• Networking with public and private agencies with similar interests

In addition, technical support is provided to those communities wishing to start a local CASA program.

Staff:
There are six, full-time staff members with training and expertise in the service and support areas of the organization. Continuing education for staff consists of training, participation in conferences and seminars and interaction with public and private child welfare organizations.

Board of Directors:
The current Board is made up of up to 25 members who represent a cross-section of professional and volunteer experience. 25% of the members are staff of local CASA programs; two members are Juvenile Court Judicial Officers and two are Juvenile Court Administrators.

Financial Support:
Washington State CASA receives funding from the State of Washington, the Stuart Foundation, corporate sponsors for the annual conference and special promotion campaigns, the National CASA Association, and individual contributions.

Washington State CASA is a member of the National CASA Association.