Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) for Children is a community-based program that recruits, trains, and supports citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in courtrooms and communities. Volunteer advocates - empowered directly by the courts - offer judges the critical information they need to ensure that each child’s rights and needs are being attended to while in foster care. Volunteers stay with children until they are placed in loving permanent homes. For many abused children, a CASA volunteer is the only constant adult presence in their lives. Children with a CASA volunteer: - are more likely to find a safe and permanent home - spend less time in foster care - do better in school - are less likely to be bounced from home to home - receive more help while in the foster care system