CASA of Northwest Arkansas is launching “26 in 2026,” a campaign to train, graduate, and swear in 26 new volunteer advocates by the end of the year — enough to ensure every child in foster care across Benton, Washington, Madison, and Carroll counties has someone speaking up for them.
The campaign comes after CASA of NWA fell short last year of its goal to provide a trained volunteer advocate for every child in the local foster care system. Between July 2025 and June 2026, our 272 volunteer advocates served 525 children, teens, and young adults in foster care. Despite that effort, 27 children were left without an advocate and forced to navigate the complexities of the foster care system without a dedicated volunteer to hear their questions, find answers, and speak up for their best interests.
“Each one of those 27 children is a child who needs someone in their corner and doesn’t have one. That’s not a statistic to us; it’s a name, a face, a kid who deserves better. We can close that gap, but only with more volunteers,” said Crystal Vickmark, Executive Director of CASA of NWA.
How to Get Involved
The first step to becoming a volunteer is attending a free CASA 101 information session. We’re offering three virtual sessions this month:
- Thursday, August 20 at 10 a.m.
- Thursday, August 20 at 6 p.m.
- Wednesday, August 26 at 12 p.m.
Community members can register for a session or reach out to CASA of NWA directly. No legal or social work background is required — we provide full training.
For those ready to move forward after an info session, two upcoming training cycles — held over the lunch hour via Zoom — make it easier than ever to complete the process:
- Begins September 10, 2026 — Graduates October 8, 2026 (lunchtime Zoom)
- Begins October 21, 2026 — Graduates November 18, 2026 (lunchtime Zoom)
Learn more or sign up at nwacasa.org/volunteer/become-a-volunteer.