About Us

Cleveland County CASA Board Members, meetings, and agendas page.

Cleveland County CASA, Inc.

When an abused or neglected child enters into the juvenile court and foster care system, they enter it virtually alone.

In 1977, a Judge in Seattle, Washington noticed that when he looked out over all the people presenting information to him when he heard a case of an abused or neglected child, one critical voice was missing. There was no one there whose sole focus was the best interest of the child. In times of fiscal constraints and agency politics, who better to get that information from than a trained community volunteer? Hence the birth of the CASA movement.

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) are community volunteers who represent the best interests of abused and neglected children who are wards of the juvenile court. After being screened and trained, a CASA is appointed to a child or sibling group. Through his or her court order, the CASA researches the case, talks to the child and involved parties and professionals, advocates for needed services and timely decisions, and submits written recommendations to the court.

Cleveland County CASA (CCCASA), the first program in Oklahoma, was started in 1984 by Judge Alan Couch. Due to funding limitations, CCCASA (a private, non-profit organization) was small and struggled for the first four years of existence. In 1988, the Board of Directors reorganized, leading to the phenomenal growth and success that defines the program today. In 1995, Cleveland County CASA started CASA Outreach serving McClain and Garvin Counties, which along with Cleveland County, comprise the 21st Judicial District in Oklahoma. Last year, CCCASA worked with more than 93 CASA volunteers who represented 252 abused and neglected children.

Cleveland County CASA is a member in good standing with both the National CASA Association and the Oklahoma CASA Association. For more information about CASA across the state of Oklahoma, go to the Oklahoma CASA Association Web Site.