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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate the Illinois Association
4of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) on providing best
5interest advocacy for youth in care for the past 31 years; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Founded in 1993, Illinois CASA is the organizing
7body for 31 local CASA programs in 55 of the 102 counties in
8Illinois that recruit, train, and manage more than 3,400
9volunteer advocates who advocate for the best interests of
10children who have experienced abuse and/or neglect and are now
11involved in the child welfare system; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Illinois CASA provides statewide advocacy,
13technical assistance, quality assurance, training, and
14resources for the network of local CASA programs, builds
15capacity and plans for the growth of the CASA network, and
16advocates for reform and improvement in the child welfare
17sector in Illinois; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Illinois CASA's volunteer advocates are trained
19and supervised by their local agencies and sworn to
20confidentiality by the Juvenile Judge of the Circuit Court;
21they gather objective information that is used for the best
22interest advocacy for each child and report to the court

 

 

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1regularly on the status of each child, providing valuable
2recommendations that have a lasting impact on permanency; they
3are each assigned to one case at a time, usually concerning one
4or two children, and serve on that case until it closes while
5working as a team member with the caseworker assigned by the
6Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and the
7Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) Attorney assigned to the child;
8overall, they have contributed more than 275,000 hours of
9collective time; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Illinois CASA has developed the Illinois Equity
11Task Force to ensure that an environment of Diversity, Equity,
12and Inclusion (DEI) remains a focal point in providing
13equitable services and resources for all children who have
14experienced abuse and/or neglect; since the adoption of its
15DEI statement, the organization's board and the task force
16have coordinated an ongoing review of its mission statement,
17policies, and alignment to newly developed DEI principles; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Over the course of its 31-year history, Illinois
19CASA has collaborated meaningfully with partners to deliver
20training and technical assistance focused on meeting the needs
21of children, advocated for policies that more broadly
22addressed the needs of all involved in the child welfare
23system, and supported its staff and volunteers with programs
24that focus on vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and

 

 

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1burnout so they can provide trauma-informed support to
2children; therefore, be it
 
3    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
4HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
5we congratulate the Illinois Association of Court Appointed
6Special Advocates (CASA) on providing best interest advocacy
7for youth in care for the past 31 years, and we recognize the
8organization for its continued service and dedication to the
9children of Illinois and the State; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
11presented to Illinois CASA as an expression of our esteem and
12respect.