CASA Delaware Live!

In Episode #89, we chat with Adrienne Owen from the Office of the Child Advocate. She discusses how our office, especially the Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT) operates to identify and support victims. Enjoy! 

In Episode #88, we discuss the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, called "NCMEC" with Melissa Snow. Melissa shares with us why children go missing, what the Center does to find these children and what happens upon re-entry. She mentions two great online resources during her chat, so here they are! National Center for Missing & Exploited Children: https://www.missingk...

In episode #87, we speak with Stacey Simon of CORAS, which used to be Connections, CSP. CORAS focuses on providing substance abuse and mental health treatment to the community. As CASA Volunteers, you may encounter families who are seeking, or in need of seeking, substance abuse or mental health treatment. CORAS has been able to provide both services to clients across Delaware. Stacey shares some...

In Episode #86, we chat with Deputy Treasurer Jordan Seemans who educates us on the Aspire 529 program, a program specifically designed for youth experiencing foster care to take advantage of in order to financially plan for their educational future. This is a great program that our youth can take advantage of and Jordan teaches us what CASAs can do to support furthering youth's education. In...

In Episode #85, we chat with Judge Natalie Haskins of New Castle County Family Court. She walks us through Burdens of Proof, two major federal laws that affect our dependency/neglect cases and include legal lingo, and finally she shares some advice about advocating for Best Interest. You can learn about the Best Interest factors here: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://cou...

In Episode #84, CASA Carmine Alessandro shares his knowledge and experience with us about financial management. Carmine shares some tips that a CASA can use when speaking to a youth about financial management including determining what are WANTS versus NEEDS and the idea of saving for a goal. He also shares that CASA Volunteers can work with youth to outline their current income and expenses to en...

In Episode #83, we hear from 3 CASA Volunteers and one CASA Coordinator as they share their experience working with youth who have turned 18 and are now in Extended Jurisdiction. We speak with CASAs Kathie Koster, Shelli Smith and Sarah Fulton as well as CASA Coordinator Nakia Howard who all share their thoughts on some barriers that their youth experienced. They also share how their advocacy chan...

In Episode #82, we interview child attorney Bonnie Gladu. She mostly serves Kent County cases working her corner of the CASA Triad. Bonnie sheds some light on how she uses her previous career as a therapist to best advocate for children experiencing foster care. Bonnie also provides some insight into how she feels CASA volunteers can best support the Child Attorney in their case as well as some ti...

In Episode #81, we speak with retired Family Court Judge Aida Waserstein. She has spent roughly 45 years in family law, first as a practioner and her final 21 years were spent on the bench. She has an incredible life story involving experience in foster care herself. Judge Waserstein is also an author of My Name is Aida and several other children's books. She shares her insight with us on how...

In Episode #80, we chat with Dr. Lynn Moyer who discusses child specific recruitment, known as CSR. As a child-specific recruiter, Lynn works with prospective adoptive families for children who are unable to reunite with their parents. In this podcast, she discusses how she works with families through a commitment lens to ensure the identified family is a good fit for the child. She discusses why...

In Episode #79, Claudine Wiant of the Beau Biden Foundation describes what Human Trafficking is, who are the potential victims, and how to prevent human trafficking. She explains the history of how it became illegal as well as what CASA volunteers should be aware of when working with a youth experiencing foster care, as they are a target population. Here are some resources she shared with us: 1-88...

In Episode #78, we chat with Nick Beard who works in the field of Domestic Violence. Nick is also a CASA volunteer so she is able to weave her experience as both a CASA and a DV advocate. She shares some information on how domestic violence effects children and their families. She tells about some key terms we should use and some that we should avoid. She also discusses some resources that can be...

In Episode #77, we chat with social worker and CASA Amina Saunders who shares with us some insight on best advocacy strategies for representing minority youth. In Delaware, we have an unequal demographic when it comes to CASAs racial background and the children we represent. Amina shares some nationwide statistics about minority youth in care but also shares some actions that CASAs can take to bes...

In Episode #76, we split it into two sections. The first section is an interview with CASA State Director Melissa Palokas. Missy shares with us some stats about 2022 in regards to child representation as well as CASA statistics. She also shares some priorities for 2023 which includes the need for more CASAs! If you know of anyone interested, please send them our way! The second part of the podcast...

In Episode #75, we chat with Stacy Shamburger of the Life Lines Program, which is part of the West End Neighborhood house. Stacy explains the Life Lines program and what services are provided to the child we advocate for. Stacy describes who qualifies and what information about the program might be helpful for CASAs to know. Enjoy! 

In Episode #74, we chat with three CASA Volunteers about how the Get Started! Mike Deloy and Sarah Fulton have both been CASA Volunteers for about 1.5 years, while Lynne Nickel has been a CASA for about 5 years. All three share their thoughts on how they get started on a case, who they interview first, and what actions they take to identify potential permanency options. This is a great podcast for...

In Episode #73, we chat with New Castle County Family Court Judge Michael Arrington, Kent County Family Court Judge Mardi Pyott, and Sussex County Family Court Judge Paula Ryan. All three judges share their thoughts on the importance of involving youth in court. They also discuss ways that youth can participate, what barriers exist to their participation, and ways to overcome those barriers. The t...

In Episode #72, we interview Tracy Whitehouse and Moira Dillon of the Division of Family Services to explore Levels of Care, known as LOC. Both Tracy and Moira discuss what Levels of Care are used for and how they impact a child experiencing foster care. This podcast is super helpful for any CASA to listen to as it explains how a child's needs are determined and how that affects payments for...

In Episode #71, we chat with CASA Rob Teti and his CASA youth, Tymir. Tymir came into care and received Rob as his CASA. Rob worked with Tymir for several weeks and immediately identified some of Tymir's needs and interests. Turns out, Tymir loves animals and guess who is a Veterinarian? You guessed it....Rob! They immediately clicked over animals and Rob supported Tymir as he was reunified w...

In Episode #70, we interview Jocelyn Langrehr from the Prevention of Behavioral Health department. She explains what a CAS evaluation is, who makes referrals, what a psychologist considers when conducting a CAS evaluation, and what is the purpose of a CAS evaluation. Often times, a CASA volunteer finds themselves with a youth who is being referred for a CAS evaluation. It might be for a variety of...

In Episode #69, we interview three CASA Volunteers who share their strategies in how they broke down the barriers with their assigned youth. Rob shared that he created Ground Rules : Be honest Stay open-minded No judgement He feels that it is very helpful to lay out some ground rules with his assigned youth so that they each know there the other is coming from. Mary shared her experience with  Com...

In Episode #68, CASA Volunteers play a Jeopardy-Style game show to learn more about specific Delaware acronyms! In child welfare, there are all too many acronyms and it helps to understand what most of them are as well as what they actually do. Enjoy! 

In Episode #67, we speak with Matt Coyle of the American Lung Association. He describes two teen programs with us and how the American Lung Association collaborates with schools to promote education centered around smoking. He describes the difference between cigarettes and e-cigarettes and provides us with some information on how to support our teen clients who might find themselves interested in...

In Episode #66, we interview Aiyana Lucas from Wrap Around Delaware. She is a facilitator of Dual Status Youth Meetings, known as DSYMs. These meetings are focused on bringing the team together for youth who are involved in both DFS (child welfare) and YRS (juvenile justice) in helping to streamline efforts provided by both agencies. Aiyana chats with us about how those meetings are held, who atte...

In Episode #65, we interview Family Court Judge Theresa Hayes! She was appointed to the bench in November, 2021 and has spent decades working in family law in private practice. During our chat, she discusses what inspired her to get into family law and how her transition has been from private practice to joining the bench. She has worked with CASA Volunteers for decades and describes what she feel...