It takes the kids who seem to be in the most immediate danger. The ones truly in the most danger never get referred to CASA, of course. Saturday evening, the names of a dozen of those children were read aloud. Her father was convicted of squeezing her to death. Government-based services are poorly funded, understaffed and overwhelmed.
Staff turnover is high.
Staff burnout is higher. Children who are taken out of abusive homes are shuttled from one foster home to the next. Nationally, the average stay for a child in foster care is 18 months. In Tennessee, the average stay is nearly five years. Many CASA staff members and volunteers are adoptive parents or foster parents or emergency-shelter parents.