Why do we have an Equitable Impact Plan?
Because children thrive in a society that is fair and just.
Our vision is to create a community where every child is able to thrive in a safe, healthy, and loving home, and all families and children are treated equitably.
Goals
1. Gain an understanding of PCASA’s impact through exploration of data, policies, and procedures.
2. Ensure the PCASA community more closely matches the demographic makeup of the Piedmont CASA service area.
3. Develop a framework to meaningfully include youth voices in the PCASA organization and to compensate youth for their involvement.
4. Address accessibility and equity issues revealed as a part of the 2024 audit.
GOAL 1
GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF PCASA'S IMPACT THROUGH EXPLORATION OF DATA, POLICIES, AND PROCEDURES.
Conduct organization wide GAP analysis.
- Detailed examination of the work that PCASA is currently doing, who is responsible for what, and what needs/wants are not being met.
- This analysis should be followed by a review of job descriptions and possible reassignment of responsibilities.
Ongoing
President
Staff
Review demographic information of our service population.
- Use most recent US Census data as well as locality specific DSS and court data to develop a full demographic map of our service population.
Summer- Fall 2023
President
PCASA DEI Committee
Outside Consultant/Intern
Conduct accessibility audit of our communications.
- Are the ways we communicate presenting barriers to our services, volunteering, or applying for jobs?
- How do we address barriers if we find them?
Complete
Outside Consultant
Conduct accessibility audit of our physical spaces.
- Is our office space creating barriers to our services, volunteering, or applying for jobs?
- How do we address barriers if we find them?
Complete
Analyze internal PCASA data to determine outcomes, impact, and areas for growth.
- How do we currently define our impact? What information do we use to support that definition?
- How do we define equitable impact?
- Look at current goals that we use to define impact. Are they the right ones? Do our current goals get us where want to be when we think of equitable impact
- Need a work session to review the goals and data tracking that we are currently engaged in.
Complete
President
PCASA DEI Committee
Outside Consultant
Audit policies and procedures.
- Are we creating barriers through the language of our policies and procedures?
- Are we creating barriers through the types of policies and procedures that we have?
- How do we address barriers as we find them?
In Progress.
Due to be completed by July 1, 2024.
President
PCASA DEI Committee
Outside Consultant
GOAL 2
ENSURE THE PCASA COMMUNITY MORE CLOSELY MATCHES THE DEMOGRAPHIC MAKEUP OF THE PCASA SERVICE AREA.
Community awareness campaign focused on educating the public about the role of a CASA and a Bridges Coach and independent status.
- Develop DEI section of website to include Equitable Impact plan.
Ongoing
President
Advancement Director
- Consider trainings like the Poverty Simulation and Close to Home webinars that invite public to participate.
Ongoing
President
Program Director
- Consider sharing results of Data Fellows project publicly.
Ongoing
President
Program Director
- Utilize asset-based language.
Ongoing
President
Advancement Director
Recruit Board members from backgrounds that match or mirror our service population and/or have lived experience in the foster care system.
- Utilize PCASA Board Attributes, Skills, and Expertise survey and template in conjunction with Board discussion to identify areas of need as openings become available.
Ongoing
President
Board Recruitment Committee
- Conduct Board exit interviews.
As needed
President
Board Chair
Develop Board recruitment and development plan.
- Create new members orientaton presentation and plan.
Completed
President
Board Recruitment Committee
- Develop new Board member recruitment plan.
Jan. 1, 2025
President
Board Recruitment Committee
Recruit staff from backgrounds that match or mirror our service population and/or have lived experience in the foster care system.
- Revise job postings to include:
- Publish salary in all job postings.
- Add inclusive language into job postings to indicate that historically marginalized applicants and/or applicants from underrepresented populations are welcome and encouraged to apply.
As needed
President
Office Director
Program Director
- Consider where are we posting our position announcements and how are we publicizing (non-online options) with each new posting.
- As we expand, how do we target candidates who represent the counties we are looking to expand into?
As needed
President
Office Director
Program Director
Cultivate a broader and more diverse donor base.
- Attend networking and outreach events in demographically diverse communities.
Ongoing
President
Event Coordinator
- Host fundraising and educational events that are accessible to more individuals and do not require a significant financial investment to attend or participate.
Ongoing
President
Event Coordinator
Conduct an internal PCASA compensation study.
- Does PCASA’s salary and benefits package equate to a living wage in our service area?
- Explore possibility of support for this study from UVA (Batten, Darden, or McIntire)
By Jan. 2026
President
Board
Possible Outside Consultant
- Advocate for local salary study by CNE or other organzation.
Ongoing
President
Board
Develop a targeted strategy to recruit, train, and retain a Volunteer pool from backgrounds that match or mirror our service population and/or have lived experience in the foster care system.
- Develop a Volunteer recruitment plan and review/revise annually.
By July 1st each year
President
Program Director
- Explore the creation of a framework for a DEI advisory group made up of community leaders to assist with targeted community outreach.
March 1, 2025
DEI Committee
President
- Research viability of a CASA partner program with focus on PVCC.
July 1, 2026
President
Program Director
- Devise strategies to capture information about the experiences and insights of current and former Volunteers about service experience and recruitment opportunities.
Ongoing and in place by Jan. 1, 2025
President
Program Director
Supervisors
- Discuss Mission, Vision, Values, and DEI Plan and its importance in all information sessions.
Ongoing (has started)
Program Director
Supervisors
- Develop more targeted recruitment brochures for specific demographic groups and our underlying reason for this targeted recruitment (more CASAs who reflect the families we serve).
March 1, 2025
Supervisor
Advancement Director
- Host specific diversity recruitment events
In preparation for Spring 2025 training
President
Program Director
Supervisors
- Host in-person CASA Connections lunches and office hours in Louisa, Greene, Fluvanna, and Madison.
Ongoing
Supervisors
Make CASA training and service more accessible to a broader range of individuals.
- Research viability of a CASA partner program with focus on PVCC or buddy program for people with language or accessibility needs.
See above
President
PCASA DEI Committee
PCASA Board
- Seek financial support to be able to provide gas cards to CASA Volunteers or otherwise reimburse them for costs associated with volunteering.
Ongoing
President
Advancement Director
- Explore Volunteer compensation model.
July 2026
President
Program Director
- Poll Volunteers from rural counties about their needs and interest in satellite work locations.
Spring 2025
President
Program Director
Supervisors
- Explore availability of satellite work locations for Volunteers in rural areas far from Cville office.
July 1, 2025
President
Program Director
Supervisors
Provide and certify annual DEI training of Board, staff, and Volunteers (NCASA requirement).
- Offer five in-service trainings a year focused on DEI issues.
- The five trainings should be focused on the following highly marginalized populations often overrepresented in the foster care system: Black, Latino, those experiencing poverty/homelessness, undocumented immigrants, and LGBTQ+. Trainings will be labeled appropriately so that Volunteers know they count toward the two-hour requirement. As we learn more about our service population through Goal 1, adjust/revise trainings that reflect what we learn.
Ongoing
President
Program Director
- Require Volunteers to complete two hours of DEI related training a year.
Completed
- Explain the importance/relevance of DEI in all of our preservice and related inservice trainings.
Ongoing
President
Program Director
CASA Supervisors
- Develop system for tracking Board, staff, and Volunteer attendance in CASA Manager.
Ongoing
President
Program Director
Conduct accessibility audit of our communications and physical spaces.
GOAL 3
DEVELOP A FRAMEWORK TO MEANINGFULLY INCLUDE YOUTH VOICES IN THE PCASA ORGANIZATION AND TO COMPENSATE YOUTH FOR THEIR INVOLVEMENT.
Develop a framework to meaningfully include youth voices in the PCASA organization.
- Research other organizations who have done this well and obtain their input.
October 2024
President
Program Director
Coaches
- Survey youth and alumni about this idea.
December 2024
President
Program Director
Coaches
- Create an internal task force to develop the framework for this program.
June 2025
President
Program Director
Coaches
Compensate youth for their involvement.
- Determine level and form of meaningful compensation.
October 2025
President
Program Director
- Seek financial support to be able to provide compensation.
Ongoing and in place by January 2026
President
Advancement Director
PCASA Advancement Committee
GOAL 4
ADDRESS ACCESSIBLITY AND EQUITY ISSUES REVEALED AS A PART OF 2024 AUDIT.
Address accessibility issues found as a result of completed audit of our website.
- Improve the overall accessibility of the website by reducing the number of flagged items by 75%.
- Review website to ensure communications and images are equitable, inclusive, and representative.
Complete
President
Advancement Director
Prioritize and commit to equitable, inclusive, and representative communications.
- Develop communications plan/rubric to ensure communications are equitable, inclusive, and representative. Plan should address both existing communications and rubric for future communications.
January 1, 2025
President
Advancement Director
Explore renovation of first floor to make ADA compliant.
January 1, 2026
President
Board
Communicate with families and children that CASA serves and interacts through age appropriate and reading level appropriate means.
- How do we introduce CASA to the children and families we serve?
- Review letters, materials, and website for accessilbity. What grade level are these materials written on? Do we need to have materials prepared for different age groups of children?
Fall 2024
Interns
Supervisors
- Revise letters, materials, and website based on findings of accessibility review.
- As documents are revised, have them translated into Spanish and Arabic or other necessary languages.
Summer 2025
Interns
Supervisors
Continue to explore ways to gather feedback from children and families we serve.
- How can we do this while protecting confidentiality?
- How can we do this without retraumatizing individuals?
- Are town halls an option?
- Explore incentivizing feedback.
Ongoing
Adjust pre-service training based on results of accessibility audit and the information we learn about our service population.
On hold until new curriculum released
Program Director
Supervisors
Explore accreditation through Human Rights Campaign’s All Children All Families program.
Ongoing
DEI Committee
Diversity Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Trina Clark, Board of Directors
Leah Cole, Program Director
Kate Duvall, President and CEO
Meara Habashi, Board of Directors
Ashlie Muñoz Nieves, Bridges to Success Coach
Siri Russell, Board of Directors