OCF Convenes Oregon Foundations to Coordinate Support for CASA

Though they are legislatively mandated, Oregon’s Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) programs depend on private funding for 64 percent of their budgets.  The money is difficult to raise. Consequently, CASA programs statewide currently serve only a third of the children who need help, and many programs have volunteers with large caseloads that do not meet national CASA standards. 

The Oregon Commission on Children and Families’ (OCCF) CASA office and its statewide network of local executive directors have developed a plan to improve the quality and increase the capacity of local CASA programs.  The plan’s first phase calls for an increase in the number of children served to 6,000 by 2009 (a 42 percent increase over the current level).  The $1.6 million project includes

• expanded networking and training opportunities through peer mentors
• training and upgrades in data management
• increases in staffing
• training in community outreach to build local support

OCF initiated a working group of Oregon foundations beginning in March 2006 to develop a coordinated approach to funding this strategy.  Participating foundations are accepting grant proposals that are aligned with the strategy and timetable and that also fit well within each foundation’s own funding priorities. 

From the beginning, the funders working group saw an increased public sector investment as essential to the strategy’s success.  Fortunately, the 2007 legislature increased its general fund support for CASA in the 2007-09 biennium by about $1 million, or 70 percent above the 2005-07 level.

Among the foundations participating in the project are:   

• The Collins Foundation
• Meyer Memorial Trust
• The Oregon Community Foundation
• Schnitzer Family Foundation
• The Ford Family Foundation
• The Spirit Mountain Community Fund
• Juan Young Trust (western division)

In November 2006 The Oregon Community Foundation granted $40,000 to OCCF to seed the statewide effort.  OCF has set aside up to $200,000 this year from discretionary and donor advised funds for proposals from local groups and will consider the initial proposals in November 2007. 

The Juan Young Trust (West) has recently approved several grants to local CASA groups and anticipates funding proposals from its 16 county area.  The Collins Foundation has set aside up to $150,000 for proposals from local CASA groups in 2007.  In February the Meyer Memorial Trust granted $343,470 to fully fund statewide training and support in 2007-08, and the Trust is also considering local proposals.  The Ford Family Foundation will review projects from CASA groups in 19 rural counties.  Some CASA organizations will apply to several funders based on the plan.

All local CASA organizations received additional training in 2007 based on the funding for the state network provided by the Meyer Trust and OCF.  The statewide CASA directors network will play a continuing role in providing formal peer mentoring and offer a sounding board for the statewide strategy.