Monthly Updates, Court Reports, and Contact Logs, Oh My!

Documentation remains one of the most difficult, yet most important procedures for every CASA/GAL. As you know, we operate within an organization and a court system that requires constant documentation. National CASA standards and Ohio Rules of Superintendence, along with local court rules and CASA of Franklin County policies all require different information. We also collect relevant data for some of our grants. This makes our monthly updates and court reports feel overwhelming at times.

The focus group participants asked for a chance to revamp these forms and we agree! We are in the process of collecting volunteers for a Task Force to tackle the Monthly Update forms. We will meet in early December to discuss changes and delegate responsibilities. If you are interested please contact Anne.

GAL court reports are in a state of flux in Franklin County. The good news is that, for the time being, its business as usual for all CASA volunteers! Rule 48 requires some changes, and the local court will soon give direction on what they will expect in these new Rule 48 reports. As discussed in the focus groups, currently staff attorneys submit a Rule 48 report based on the volunteer’s Court Report. With all of the changes, we are waiting to train everyone on new Court Reports once the local courts sort it all out.

Volunteers are still required to submit their Court Reports 10 days before the next hearing. Keep in mind also, that the 10 days before a hearing are sometimes critical and unpredictable. You are able to orally supplement the report in the court room, so be sure to stay informed on your case right up until the court date!

Training and Collaboration!

If you know of a great organization that is available to train volunteers, please let Julie know! We are always looking to provide useful training for our volunteers. Some focus group participants were also interested in cross-training with Franklin County Children’s Services and other agencies. We think this is a good idea and are looking into the possibility. As you all know, we work within an imperfect system, and collaborating with other social agencies will serve to strengthen the level of services for all children.

Parking downtown is a pain! This was a common message heard at the focus groups, and we understand. Especially in the coming winter months, please plan on arriving at the courthouse for 9am hearings very early to find a spot in the garages. Both county garages are usually full by 8:30 on winter mornings. You are welcome to come up to our office, relax and have some coffee before your hearing. We do have a limited amount of parking tokens for the county garages only, so please ask for tokens when you come into the CASA office prior to or immediately following a court hearing. Tokens or parking reimbursements are not available for in-service trainings. With that in mind, when possible, we try to schedule in-service trainings off-site or after 6:00p.m., when meters are free. If you have connections with an appropriate place for trainings, please let us know.



Victims of Crime Applications and VINE Assistance Pamphlets

We heard from the focus groups that some of the paperwork we present to families regarding the Victim’s of Crime Act confuses them. We understand that it requires some extra explanations to families, but it is mandatory for us to present the material because of grant requirements. Please contact Marilyn directly if you have more questions about how to present this information.

Those who can, do. Those who can do more, volunteer.

The first question we asked of Focus Group participants concentrated on what things volunteers and other members of the community could do to be involved with CASA. The answers from the Focus Groups were thoughtful and creative! We summarized our discussion into five main areas.

In the office:

We love when volunteers come and help out in the office! Whether it's stuffing envelopes for a large mailing, or handwriting thank-yous following the Breakfast, your help is greatly appreciated! Please let the CASA office know if you, or someone you know, would like to help out!

Training/Mentoring of other CASA/GALs:
Volunteers already help out in our pre-service training, and we would love to have more volunteers facilitate trainings throughout the year. If you have a great idea or wish to collaborate with another organization to offer CASA/GAL training opportunities, please tell Director of Volunteers, Julie Carper.

Mentoring came up a lot in our focus groups. After much discussion, we found that informal mentoring is a good fit for our program. We hope that Staff Attorneys are your first resource for questions, and you feel like a partner with your Staff Attorney. There is nothing you cannot ask your Staff Attorney! While the Franklin County Juvenile Court is not in favor of GAL teaming-up for home visits or court appearances, we recognize that you may want another volunteer to answer your questions and to be a sounding board. We are working on gathering a list of experienced volunteers who are interested in providing such a service.

Most volunteers were in agreement- they want more group social events! Some volunteers want to gather and discuss common issues, or host a book club. These are all possibilities! If you would like to host an event, please let our office know. A book club is a very popular idea, which would also help you earn continuing education credit- for reading and discussing the book! Do note, that because of the confidential and sensitive nature of our work, one of our staff members or a trained volunteer will need to be present for group discussion of any case issues.

Financial:
At the Focus Groups, some questions arose about our fundraising and if volunteers can do more. The answer is YES!

CASA of Franklin County follows the Benevon model of fundraising. This model implements a mission-based system for raising sustainable funding from individual donors. Our annual fundraiser is the Speak Up For Children Breakfast held in October.

The Benevon model places importance on relationships and connections among individuals who support our mission, by encouraging them to link others to the organization. This can be done through individual projects and fundraisers, and CASA of Franklin County would be the benefactor. In the past, one volunteer organized a golf outing and donated the proceeds to CASA. Another person gave a donation to CASA in lieu of favors at her wedding reception. People have been very creative!

At the Focus Groups, people mentioned community organizations and other groups they thought would be able to donate to CASA. This is a great way to make connections in the community! We are part of two workplace giving campaigns. CASA is one of 57 member organizations of Community Shares of Mid-Ohio. We are also an approved agency for the United Way of Central Ohio’s Contributor Choice Program for the 2009 campaign year. So yes, you can organize fundraising events for us. Contact Jeff Redfield, Director of Development, with your ideas and please spread the word!

Website & Technology:

If you have not recently, please check out our website http://www.casacolumbus.org/. It had a major overhaul this summer and has a lot of useful information for volunteers under the Current Volunteers tab on the left of the front page. We have organized useful links to forms and community resources that may be of interest to CASA/GALs.

Volunteers at the focus groups also mentioned the need for a CASA calendar, and our website now has one! It is the last link on the left of the front page. It lists trainings, in-service opportunities and other important information. The website will be continually updated , and we look forward to creating a useful resource for our volunteers.

Community Outreach/Recruitment:
A final point of discussion was community events and outreach programs. Currently, CASA of Franklin County has a Speaker's Bureau and coordinates many community outreach activities, including a monthly community tour and a Diversity Advisory Team.

We love it when volunteers take the initiative and tell people about our organization and our mission! If you would like to be trained for our Speaker's Bureau, or have an idea about community groups you think would welcome information about us, please contact Jason Hillyer, our Director of Outreach.