2025 Colorado State Conference Schedule

Building A Culture of Belonging

This training is designed to mentally stretch you in the best of ways.  By taking deep dives into what it means to, "be" culturally competent, practice cultural humility, explore implicit bias and much more we will begin to unlock our more inclusive selves.  This training has been taught at multiple state-wide CASA conferences, and helps to provide best practices in the work we do.

Breakout 1

Building Empathy: Understanding the Challenges Caused by Financial Insecurity

Participants will engage in an interactive session, taking them on a journey to better understand the challenges faced by families who experience financial hardship and insecurity. On this journey, participants will be immersed in a real family's story, make difficult financial decisions that the family faced, and evaluate the outcome of those decisions. Through this session, participants will gain knowledge of economic and social systems that impact families experiencing economic insecurity, transform about this complicated topic, and gain empathy for their neighbors.

Law and Magic: The law and wishes to discuss permanency, safety, and risk

This session will examine how Guardians ad Litem (GALs) and Counsel for Youth (CFYs) assess safety and permanency for children, and how CASA volunteers can support these efforts. We'll clarify the distinct roles of GALs and CFYs, especially the client-directed nature of CFY advocacy. Key topics include permanency options—such as reunification, kinship care, and RGAP—and the legal versus practical challenges in securing stable placements. We'll explore the concept of "safe enough" home environments, balancing ideal conditions with realistic support services. The session will also address tensions when children thrive in current placements but face return to financially struggling parents, and review recent case law affecting children's rights in dependency proceedings.

Breakout 2

Infusing Trauma-Informed Strategies in Advocacy and Practice

Being "trauma-informed" is more than a buzzword, it's a mindset and a skillset. This interactive session will break down what it really means to be trauma-informed in your role as a CASA volunteer or staff member. After reviewing the impact of stress and trauma on children, you'll learn practical strategies to support children and youth through trauma-responsive interactions, and how to evaluate whether other services in a child's life are using a trauma lens. We'll also explore how trauma impacts you as an advocate, with tools to recognize and manage compassion fatigue and secondary traumatic stress. Presented by faculty from the Kempe Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz, this session will leave you feeling empowered, supported, and better equipped to make a lasting impact.

Special Education 101

Special education plays a crucial role in ensuring that all students, regardless of their abilities, have access to quality education tailored to their individual needs. Participants will leave with a foundational understanding of special education principles, processes for identification, the significance of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), and practical supports available for students, families, and advocates to navigate the special education journey.

Who is your client: understanding how the child welfare system disproportionately impacts Colorado communities

In 2024, the Colorado legislature recognized that inequality is prevalent in the child welfare system and that people who are poor, families of color, LGBTQ+ children, and people with disabilities have a greater chance of coming into contact with the child welfare system and experiencing poor outcomes while involved with the child welfare system. The disproportionate impact of child welfare investigations and involvement on marginalized communities continues.  Participants will learn about who is most impacted by child welfare involvement in Colorado and the importance of cultural respect in their role as CASAs.

Staff Roundtable Discussions

Join one of our four themed discussion stations designed to spark meaningful conversation and shared learning among staff. Each station will focus on a different topic relevant to our work and community. You’ll choose one station to participate in during this time slot, giving you the chance to dive deeper into a subject that interests you most.

These sessions are not presentations—they’re interactive spaces for exchanging ideas, asking questions, and learning from peers. Capacity is limited, so be sure to select your preferred station during pre-registration.

Topics:

  • Reviewing an Updated Theory of Change: In this breakout session, CASA staff review and refine a draft of the Colorado CASA Network theory of change, a strategic document describing goals and activities of CASAs across the state. Any team members who feel passionate about the impact of their programs and want to help think about statewide strategy are welcome to join.

  • Staff Supporting Staff - A Networking Session on Building a Culture of Care: Through open discussion, this networking session will focus on the many ways staff members uplift and support one another. Participants will discuss formal and informal systems of peer support—from mentorship and onboarding to wellness initiatives, crisis response, and everyday acts of kindness that foster a resilient workplace culture. Whether you're a seasoned team lead or a new hire, this session is a chance to connect, reflect, and discover new ways to contribute to a supportive work environment.

  • Volunteer Recruitment: Explore strategies for attracting and retaining volunteers in today’s shifting landscape. Share challenges and successes with peers to spark new ideas and approaches.

  • Youth Advisory Board: We're excited to share the journey of Advocates for Children CASA as we developed and launched our Youth Advisory Board (YAB). This presentation will take you through the evolution of the YAB—from its initial concept to its full implementation. You'll hear this from two key perspectives: a staff member who works closely with the YAB members, supporting their growth and amplifying their voices, and a current Board member who receives valuable feedback and insight directly from the young people involved. Together, we will explore how youth engagement has shaped our organization and helped us better serve our mission.

Breakout 3

Building Sibling Bonds

The sibling relationship is often the longest relationship any of us will have. It must be supported and nurtured to ensure that youth who have experienced foster care have a strong bond with their siblings. CASA volunteers play an important role in advocating for siblings who are separated from each other. We will discuss the feelings of loss and loneliness youth experience when separated from one another. Participants will learn action steps they can implement immediately on behalf of their CASA kids. We will explore The Sibling Bill of Rights and how CASA volunteers can use it to ensure the needs of their CASA kids are beings met.

Mindful CASA Relationships Using Enneagram Wisdom

Participants will learn about two practical tools, Mindfulness and the Enneagram, to build strong connections and develop trusted, supportive relationships with CASA youth, families and teams. Participants will review Mindfulness, what it is, its importance, and strategies to use in our CASA work for attunement and regulation. They will also learn how our personality develops from birth to adulthood and why we do what we do.. They will learn about the Enneagram tool, an introduction to 9 personality patterns, and how awareness of patterns can lead to more mindful relationships. Increasing Mindfulness and use of the Enneagram to recognize our personality patterns, is a new Casability to move from trauma to triumph. Participants will also receive resources and references for follow-up.

Through an Ombudsman Lens — How Families and Children Experience Colorado's Child Welfare System

Each year, the Office of Colorado's Child Protection Ombudsman (CPO) responds to over a thousand complaints from foster parents, respondent parents, service providers, youth, and others involved in the Colorado child welfare system. Each of these groups call because they are struggling to understand and successfully navigate the state's child welfare system. This presentation will present the most common questions and frustrations we hear from children, families, and providers across the state and how the CPO assists citizens in resolving their concerns.

Transition to Adulthood-Foster Youth Bill of Rights

Lead Sponsor, Rep. Lindsay Gilchrist, and Amy Pitlik, Colorado CASA lobbysit, will walk us through HB-1271: Federal Benefits for Foster Youth, the challenges she confronted on its way to passage, implementation, and next steps for subsequent legislation.

Lindsay Gilchrist represents HD-8 in the State Legislature. She has spent her career working toward complex policy solutions. A champion for our most pressing issues: improving the child welfare system, reforming the criminal justice system, safeguarding LGBTQ rights and implementing gun violence prevention policies. Lindsay and her wife are foster and adoptive parents and know personally how important it is for youth, particularly youth in foster care, to have access to mental health services.