SCAN's Snapshots of Hope
Melissa O’Neill
State CASA Program Coordinator, Virginia Department of Criminal JusticeSystem (DCJS)
Melissa O’Neill has worked with Court Appointed pecial Advocate (CASA) Programs for 10 years at the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS). As the DCJS State CASA Program Coordinator to all the Virginia CASA programs, providing both funding and regulatory oversight, Melissa has intimate knowledge of each of Virginia’s 27 CASA programs. During her tenure, she has become the state expert on the regulations that each CASA Program must follow, overseeing both immense growth and impact of CASA programs, including SCAN’s Alexandria/Arlington CASA Program. Prior to her work with DCJS, Melissa’s MSW helped prepare her for a leadership position at the YMCA in Nashville, working with inner city at-risk youth. Her work at the YMCA has proven equally as helpful to her work with CASA programs, as she experienced nonprofit fundraising, working with volunteers and Board members and rrunning programs. She also worked in child protective services and the juvenile court system where she first developed her respect for CASA and its contributions.
When Melissa joined DCJS in 1997, there were 22 CASA programs in Virginia. She traveled around the state to introduce and be introduced to each one. SCAN’s CASA Program was the 5th Virginia program to emerge in 1988. From the time of Melissa’s start in 1997 to today, her perspective of SCAN’s CASA Program has been “steady as she goes.” As the DCJS point person for each of Virginia’s CASA Programs, Melissa’s role is both in oversight and ongoing technical assistance. She knows each program’s strengths and areas of need.
For SCAN’s CASA Program, Melissa has worked with three exceptional CASA directors, each competent and capable, steering the program in positive ways. The Alexandria CASA Program, Melissa feels, has stood out as a model program for its strengths, its foundation and its stalwart volunteers. Once Melissa understood the umbrella connection between CASA and SCAN, she felt it added great value through the offering of parent education and public awareness.
Melissa O’Neill knows the essential role the juvenile judges play in an effective CASA program. Alexandria’s CASA Program was the first one in Virginia (and nationally) to participate in a Model Court through the leadership of Chief Judge Stephen Rideout. CASA in Alexandria has always been an integral part of the court process and a highly valued partner.
Funding from DCJS goes to each Virginia CASA program based on the number of children served. That funding and the proper functioning of a program go hand in hand, making Melissa’s job of oversight a critical one. From a state perspective, Melissa has worked with SCAN’s CASA program directors on a variety of issues, each willing to give beyond their own program to provide strength to programs state-wide. Her perspective of SCAN’s CASA Program over the years is one of quiet strength – a program that goes about doing its business well. Her site visits introduced her to a very professional Board and staff who take a passionate approach to the mission, but are not flashy. Melissa says they just “do it right.”
When SCAN’s CASA Program expanded into Arlington to become the Alexandria/Arlington CASA Program, Melissa knew it was a risk, an expense and a challenge to take on a whole new jurisdiction. She was supportive because she knew a strong SCAN CASA Program could make it happen and expansion was an approach the state supported because of the cost efficiencies compared to a start-up of a new program. Indeed, SCAN’s CASA Program in Arlington has effectively collaborated with child welfare and court services professionals in seeking the best interests for vulnerable children who are in the system due to no fault of their own.
As CASA programs continue to evolve in their jurisdictions as critical partners in children’s welfare, their evolution, including that of SCAN’s Alexandria/Arlington CASA Program, benefit from the input, oversight and support of the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services and Melissa O’Neill. Keeping the role of CASA clear and concise while providing the tools to ensure CASA programs’ success, has been invaluable to the growth and development of SCAN’s CASA Program. The partnership between SCAN of Northern Virginia and the Virginia DCJS has strengthened the Alexandria/Arlington CASA Program, providing a foundation upon which the program’s expansion, community collaboration and efforts to increase diversity in its volunteer base have flourished.
When asked about the challenges facing Virginia CASA programs today, Melissa quickly points to funding and Board development. While DCJS provides base funding, programs must leverage that support through a diverse array of funding sources including foundations, individual and civic donations and community events. Melissa and DCJS will continue to seek ways to provide the guidance and support to programs to ensure such stability. From Melissa’s perspective, SCAN of Northern Virginia and its CASA program have provided an excellent model to study and emulate. The Alexandria/Arlington CASA Program has blossomed into a thriving example of smart growth and diverse funding, a combination that enables it to impact the lives of children in not one community, but now two. Thus, the partnership between SCAN and DCJS is likely to continue for years to come.
