Full Text of HR0642 103rd General Assembly
HR0642 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | | | HR0642 | | LRB103 39781 LAW 70332 r |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate the Illinois Association | 4 | | of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) on providing best | 5 | | interest advocacy for youth in care for the past 31 years; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Founded in 1993, Illinois CASA is the organizing | 7 | | body for 31 local CASA programs in 55 of the 102 counties in | 8 | | Illinois that recruit, train, and manage more than 3,400 | 9 | | volunteer advocates who advocate for the best interests of | 10 | | children who have experienced abuse and/or neglect and are now | 11 | | involved in the child welfare system; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Illinois CASA provides statewide advocacy, | 13 | | technical assistance, quality assurance, training, and | 14 | | resources for the network of local CASA programs, builds | 15 | | capacity and plans for the growth of the CASA network, and | 16 | | advocates for reform and improvement in the child welfare | 17 | | sector in Illinois; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Illinois CASA's volunteer advocates are trained | 19 | | and supervised by their local agencies and sworn to | 20 | | confidentiality by the Juvenile Judge of the Circuit Court; | 21 | | they gather objective information that is used for the best | 22 | | interest advocacy for each child and report to the court |
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| 1 | | regularly on the status of each child, providing valuable | 2 | | recommendations that have a lasting impact on permanency; they | 3 | | are each assigned to one case at a time, usually concerning one | 4 | | or two children, and serve on that case until it closes while | 5 | | working as a team member with the caseworker assigned by the | 6 | | Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and the | 7 | | Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) Attorney assigned to the child; | 8 | | overall, they have contributed more than 275,000 hours of | 9 | | collective time; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Illinois CASA has developed the Illinois Equity | 11 | | Task Force to ensure that an environment of Diversity, Equity, | 12 | | and Inclusion (DEI) remains a focal point in providing | 13 | | equitable services and resources for all children who have | 14 | | experienced abuse and/or neglect; since the adoption of its | 15 | | DEI statement, the organization's board and the task force | 16 | | have coordinated an ongoing review of its mission statement, | 17 | | policies, and alignment to newly developed DEI principles; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Over the course of its 31-year history, Illinois | 19 | | CASA has collaborated meaningfully with partners to deliver | 20 | | training and technical assistance focused on meeting the needs | 21 | | of children, advocated for policies that more broadly | 22 | | addressed the needs of all involved in the child welfare | 23 | | system, and supported its staff and volunteers with programs | 24 | | that focus on vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and |
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| 1 | | burnout so they can provide trauma-informed support to | 2 | | children; therefore, be it | 3 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 4 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 5 | | we congratulate the Illinois Association of Court Appointed | 6 | | Special Advocates (CASA) on providing best interest advocacy | 7 | | for youth in care for the past 31 years, and we recognize the | 8 | | organization for its continued service and dedication to the | 9 | | children of Illinois and the State; and be it further | 10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 11 | | presented to Illinois CASA as an expression of our esteem and | 12 | | respect. |
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