By O’Connor Daniel | Reporter
At nine years old, Houston junior Piper Ashley watched her family adopt her newborn sister through domestic adoption. She said the experience “drastically changed her life” and later incentivized her passion towards Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).
CASA trains volunteers to advocate for children in foster care and to be a constant presence at school, in court and during legal battles.
“We take for granted the stability we have,” Ashley said. “CASA gives kids a constant figure in their lives when everything else is changing.”
Ashley first learned about CASA at Baylor. Seeing how often children in foster care face affliction without a steady adult, she said it gave her a concrete way to live out Baylor’s Christian emphasis on service and justice.
“How terrifying would it be for a child to stand in court without a CASA and not have an advocate?” Ashley said. “As Christians, we’re called to advocate for those who do not have a voice and to seek justice. That’s exactly what CASA does.”
Locally, she makes teddy bears and blankets, organizes supply drives and works closely with CASA’s new executive director.
“Even if students can’t foster or adopt right now, there’s still a way to show up consistently for a child,” she said.
Ashlee Knutson, executive director of CASA in McLennan County, said student involvement like Ashley’s raises awareness of the organization.
“At the end of last year, 508 children were in foster care in McLennan County,” Knutson said. “We could serve about 30% then, [but] as of July we’re at around 38%. Our goal is to reach half by the end of the year, and we’re recruiting to keep growing.”
Knutson pointed to a recent case to illustrate a CASA’s impact.
“One family we worked with had a couple of children. When we closed the case, we knew the result wouldn’t have been the same without CASA on it,” Knutson said.
CASA kept the process moving, and the children landed where they needed to be — a best-case placement that Knutson said likely wouldn’t have happened without an advocate in their corner.
“Over a 12 to 18-month case, a child might see seven caseworkers,” Knutson said. “Their CASA is often the only adult who stays with them from start to finish.”
The mission is personal not just for Ashley, but for the Baylor sorority Kappa Alpha Theta, which hosted their third annual CASA Cookout and Concert event on Fountain Mall on Saturday. Purchase of a ticket included unlimited burgers from 12 different teams, live music and a raffle entry.
“We appreciate Piper for putting this event on because more and more people are asking about CASA,” Knutson said.
On her backpack, a small pin reads, “Ask me about CASA.” Ashley said it’s there for a reason.
“If someone asks, I get to tell them why this matters,” Ashley said.
