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About CASA

The CASA programs of the Greater Austin Area (serving Travis, Williamson, Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe & Hays Counties) have united to gather all superheroes for children for the 2020 CASA Superhero Run.

CASA speaks up for children who’ve been abused or neglected by empowering our community to volunteer as advocates for them in the court system. When the state steps in to protect a child's safety because the people responsible for protecting them have not, a judge appoints a trained CASA volunteer to make independent and informed recommendations and help the judge decide what's best for the child.

For children who've been abused or neglected, CASA means having a home instead of feeling lost, and being a priority instead of feeling invisible. For volunteers, CASA is a life-changing experience that makes our community a better place.

CASA volunteers come from every walk of life and share a commitment to improving children's lives, a willingness to learn, and an open mind towards life experiences different from their own. Volunteers complete an interview, background checks and intensive training. After being sworn-in by a judge, volunteers are appointed to a child or family of children and spend an average of 15-20 hours a month advocating for these children for the lifetime of a case. They get to know the child while also gathering information from the child's family, teachers, doctors, therapists, caregivers and anyone else involved in the child's life. Judges highly value CASA's recommendations which help them make informed decisions in the child's best interest.

The national CASA model was created by a Seattle family court judge in 1977. From that first program has grown a network of nearly 1,000 CASA and guardian ad litem programs in 49 states. CASA of Travis County was founded in 1985 and supports nearly 800 volunteers who advocate for more than 2,000 children a year. CASA of Williamson County was founded in 2009 and supports over 125 volunteers who advocate for more than 250 children a year. CASA of Central Texas (serving Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe & Hays Counties) was founded in 1985 and supports over 250 volunteers who advocate for more than 600 children a year.

Interested in becoming a CASA volunteer?

Learn more at the website for your local program: