History of CASA

Now in it's 19th year, CASA of Northeast Texas was formed in 1990 in Bowie County, Texarkana, Texas, under the direction of 5th Judicial District Judge Jack Carter. The program expanded to Cass County, Texas in 1992. In 1995, under the direction of 8th Judicial District Judge Jim Hudson, advocacy services expanded to Miller County, Texarkana, Arkansas, and then into Lafayette County. Under the direction of Judge Ted Capeheart, CASA has now expanded into the Arkansas counties of Little River, Howard, Servier, and Pike. Judge Duncan Culpepper has helped with expansion into Hempstead and Nevada county.  In 2008 our program once again expanded to include Morris and Camp counties in Texas.

CASA of Northeast Texas, Inc. is governed by a Board of Directors. The Executive Director works with the Board and staff to accomplish organzational goals and is responsible for the supervisory and managerial functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling the CASA program. The staff's role in case management is to monitor progress of the child and the volunteer, help secure and coordinate community services for the child and the family and attend staffings and hearings to ensure clear goal setting with respect to the community. The courts greatly depend on our advocacy services as well as attorneys, law enforcement agencies, child protection agencies, and the children themselves. CASA provides a check and balance system to the legal proceedings regarding child abuse, that would not exist without us. Our very existence challenges state caseworkers to be more accountable for their actions and decisions regarding children in foster care. CASA is the only volunteer organization invited into the court to provide advocacy for these children.