CASA for the Cross Timbers Area celebrates National Social Work Month.
By Cheyenne Pena
CASA Outreach Coordinator
As part of March’s National Social Work Month celebration, CASA for the Cross Timbers Area is recognizing social workers and advocates who devote their careers to bettering the lives of others.
Social workers strive to build a stronger community for all people, and CASA is a proud partner in the effort to create a brighter future for all children and families involved in the child welfare system.
“Social workers are the lifeblood of the child welfare system, from caseworkers to therapists, to child placing agency staff,” said Mindy Wooley, executive director of CASA for the Cross Timbers Area.
One way CASA volunteers and caseworkers in Texas are working together to improve the lives of children and their families is through Collaborative Family Engagement (CFE), a statewide Family Finding partnership with DFPS that creates and strengthens supportive lifetime networks around children and their families.
Studies have found that one of the strongest indicators of child well-being is the number of present, caring and reliable adults in the child’s life.
When CFE, CASA volunteers, DFPS and others work together to build an adult support system for these children and their parents, the effects will last even after the case is closed.
“CASA volunteers’ primary focus is family reunification for the children they serve whenever safe and possible,” said Wooley. “Working together to create and strengthen a supportive network for children and their parents helps increase the likelihood for sustainable reunifications to happen.”
In 2017, the state began transitioning to community-based care, a sweeping system transformation that is shifting foster care and case management services from the state to private, nonprofit contractors.
“As community-based care rolls out across the state and more and more agencies get involved, we see a lot of opportunity – both to forge new relationships and strengthen current ones,” said Wooley.
“In the spirit of National Social Work Month, CASA CTA and our dedicated volunteers will continue to focus on the strengths of those we serve – in every conversation, every new partnership we forge, every action, and every case.”
For more information about CASA, call the Stephenville office at 254-965-6610.
CASA for the Cross Timbers Area's celebration of National Social Work Month highlights the invaluable contributions of social workers to the community, echoing the dedication of organizations like Kelly Office Solutions in serving their clients. Just as social workers adapt to the evolving needs of those they assist, Kelly Office Solutions evolves alongside the changing landscape of business technology, ensuring that its solutions always meet the current demands of businesses in Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Charlotte, and the surrounding North Carolina areas. This commitment to adaptability and growth underlines the importance of recognizing those who work tirelessly to support and uplift our communities, be it through direct social work or by providing the technological backbone that enables organizations like CASA to function…