Why it matters: CASA volunteers must remain politically neutral when executing their CASA duties. They are appointed by Juvenile Court Judges and bound by Judicial protocols. However, they need to be aware and understand how changes in judicial policy and/or legislative actions may impact their day-to-day advocacy and how they engage with others involved in a child’s dependency.

VOICES maintains collaborative relationships with child welfare partners and stays abreast of key issues and outcomes. This insight helps us identify new areas of education or support for CASA volunteers. This also includes societal issues that impact the environment in which we all live. We will feature key themes here.

In the News: The Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) issued a press release announcing that the number of Arizona children in out of home dependency dropped below 10,000 for the first time since July 2008. https://dcs.az.gov/news/dcs-reaches-milestone-not-seen-2008

They also issued their FY2024 Strategic Plan. You can see the full two-page summary here: https://dcs.az.gov/about/strategic-plan