Court Appointed Special Advocates

 

The goals of the CASA program are to serve and improve outcomes for children in the dependency care foster care system, provide effective advocacy for abused and neglected children, including those in both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, and those who are dual system-involved, and to provide effective advocacy for abused and neglected children build on the training and technical assistance program and standards developed in collaboration with the National CASA Association. The CASA Program provides (1) membership and accreditation subgrants to regional, state, and local CASA organizations that support volunteer advocates who represent abused and neglected children in dependency hearings and will partner with other public and private child welfare system stakeholders at the local, state, regional, and national levels and (2) information, technical assistance, and training to volunteer advocates who represent abused and neglected children in dependency hearings and to other child welfare system stakeholders at the local, state, regional, and national levels. This program expands the national membership and accreditation program for state and local CASAs and makes available training and technical assistance to support new and existing state and local CASA programs across the nation. The program focuses on providing CASA services in communities where representation rates are low, the numbers of abused and neglected children are high, and service systems do not meet the needs of families and children. In addition, the program provides training and technical assistance in volunteer advocate recruitment and retention, volunteer advocate training, diversity, data collection and reporting, sustainability, and program standards.

Active 16.756 Office of Justice Programs, Department of Justice B - Project Grants Fiscal Year 2016 The FY 2016 funds were used to provide training and technical assistance in support of state and local capacities to promote court appointed volunteer advocacy for abused and neglected children so that every child can be safe, establish permanence, and have the opportunity to thrive.
Fiscal Year 2017 The FY 2017 funds were used to provide training and technical assistance in support of state and local capacities to promote court appointed volunteer advocacy for abused and neglected children so that every child can be safe, establish permanence, and have the opportunity to thrive. OJJDP anticipates that one application will be selected each competitive cycle.
Fiscal Year 2018 FY 2018 CASA Program funds were awarded to the National CASA Association to support national training and technical assistance as well as subgrants for CASA programs nationwide. Funds awarded were used to make 46 subgrants to state and local programs in order to help programs improve their long-term viability, retain and hire new staff, and extend the impact of their services to children in need. Subaward categories included capacity building, development, growth, local growth, and local special issues. Additionally, CASA Program funds were used to develop and promote a national branding and public awareness campaign with the goal of increasing CASA’s brand visibility while also raising public awareness about the state of abused and neglected children across the country. Victims of Child Abuse Act, 34 U.S.C. § 20323
The Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–647) contains provisions that support efforts to ensure that all abused and neglected children involved in dependency proceedings have access to a court appointed special advocate. Through the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program, OJJDP seeks to ensure that abused and neglected children receive high-quality representation in dependency court hearings. The successful applicant will provide: • Membership accreditation and subgrants to regional, state, and local CASA organizations that support volunteer advocates who represent abused and neglected children in dependency hearings and will partner with other public and private child welfare system stakeholders at the local, state, regional, and national levels. • Information, technical assistance, and training to volunteer advocates who represent abused and neglected children in dependency hearings and to other child welfare system stakeholders at the local, state, regional, and national levels. As set forth in the authorizing language in 42 U.S.C. Section 13013, the successful applicant shall be: (1) a national organization that has broad membership among court-appointed special advocate programs (OJJDP defines as having a network of volunteers representing the interests of abused and neglected children operating in a minimum of 40 of the nation's 56 states and territories) and in providing training and technical assistance to court-appointed special advocate programs; or (2) a local public or not-for-profit agency that has demonstrated the willingness to initiate, sustain, and expand a court-appointed special advocate program None. Generally applicant documentation includes the Standard Form 424 (SF-424 - Application for Federal Assistance), a program narrative, budget detail worksheet, and budget narrative. There also are a number of certifications that may be required, and other elements, as specified in the program announcement. Preapplication coordination is not applicable. 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program. Applicants for DOJ funding can submit applications online through either the federal grants portal Grants.Gov (www.grants.gov) or the DOJ's Grants Management System (GMS) (https://grants.ojp.usdoj.gov). Each program announcement will specify which system should be used for that program and will contain detailed technical instructions on how to register with the system as well as apply for funding. Applicants are generally required to register and create a profile in GMS. Specific application instructions for program announcements are available at the Office of Justice Programs web site (http://www.ojp.gov/funding/solicitations.htm). Upon approval by the Assistant Attorney General, successful applicants are notified via the Grants Management System. One copy of the grant award must be signed by the authorized official and returned to the Office of Justice Programs. Contact the headquarters or regional location, as appropriate for application deadlines varies by project Not applicable. See applicable program announcement. Varies by program. Applications are judged according to their consistency with the policies and program priorities established by OJJDP and applicable laws. Funds are available specifically to achieve the objectives of the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program as described in the Victims of Child Abuse Act, 42 U.S.C. Section 13013 Performance Reports: To assist in fulfilling the Departments responsibilities under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), Public Law 103-62, and the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010, Public Law 111–352, recipients must provide data that measures the results of their work. See Uniform Administrative Requirements, 2 C.F.R. Part 200 at Subpart F - Audit Requirements (Sec. 200.500 - 200.507) as adopted by D.O.J. in 2 C.F.R. Part 2800. All financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other records pertinent to the award must be generally retained for a period of three (3) years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report (Federal Financial Report/SF-425). For more information and exceptions, see Uniform Administrative Requirements 2 C.F.R. SS 200.333 as adopted by D.O.J. in 2 C.F.R. Part 2800. Statutory formula is not applicable to this assistance listing.

Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. Length and time phasing of assistance vary by project—see applicable program announcement. See the following for information on how assistance is awarded/release: Office of Justice Programs’ Financial Guide (www.ojp.usdoj.gov/financialguide/index.htm) and Post Award Instructions (www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/pdfs/post_award_instructions.pdf). None/Not specified. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
810 7th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20735 US
darian.hanrahan@usdoj.gov
Phone: (202) 616-3750 http://www.ojjdp.gov 15-0404-0-1-754 (Cooperative Agreements) FY 18$10,935,128.00; FY 19 est $12,000,000.00; FY 20 est $9,000,000.00; - Not applicable/available. Office of Justice Programs' Financial Guide 2011 ojp.gov/financial guide/DOJ/index.htm. and Post award Instructions (www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/pdfs/post_award_instructions.pdf), applicable OMB Circulars, and Department of Justice regulations applicable to specific types of grantees, which can be found in title 28 of the Code of Federal Regulations (28 C.F.R.).