The Glass Castle, Author: Jeanette Walls

Enjoy this preview from a National CASA newsletter

In her childhood memoir, The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls offers a blow-by-blow description of growing up with parents whose capacity for loving their children is greater than their ability to care for them. Jeannette and her three siblings spend their childhoods on the road. The itinerant family travels around the West in a series of broken-down cars, following their alcoholic father’s wild dreams and money-making schemes. Though he was a brilliant and (at times) charismatic man, Rex Walls’s inability to hold a job—along with a penchant for spending what money did come in at the local bars—leaves the family in a perennial state of poverty. Jeannette’s mother, Rose Mary—a preoccupied artist and self-described “excitement addict”—shares her husband’s intellect and taste for adventure. She also possesses a laissez-faire approach to parenting and a conviction that suffering would build character in her children. This theory was perpetually tested by Jeannette and her siblings, who frequently went hungry and suffered a series of injuries due to their parents’ neglect. What sets The Glass Castle apart from many contemporary, “tell-all” family memoirs is that while Jeannette Walls’s story is one of extreme neglect, it is also one of her parents’—particularly her father’s—love for the children. “My father’s love for me—flawed as it was—was pretty much what kept me going when I was a kid. I had to believe in him or I had nothing,” the author wrote in an

Amazon.com forum. “I actually think that in many ways I was incredibly lucky because I did feel loved and my parents both put a huge emphasis on education and self-esteem,” she commented in another online forum. But by the second half of the book, when they finally settle down in Rex Walls’s hometown of Welch, West Virginia, the family is in an extreme state. Rex disappears on drinking binges for days at a time; Rose Mary is present but increasingly withdrawn, consumed by her own needs and her art. The family is living in a dilapidated home with no indoor plumbing and a garbage pit in the backyard. It is at this point that Jeannette—now a teenager—realizes that she and her siblings must take control of their lives and escape from their parents. Jeannette Walls kept her early life a secret, until finally sharing her story when she published The Glass Castle in 2005.

2018 National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association Conference:

Working Together for Their Best Interest

With both beautiful, spring-like weather and a historic nor’easter in sight, the nine members of Iowa’s delegation to the National CASA Association annual conference boarded planes on March 9th, headed to Boston, MA.  The theme of this year’s conference “Working Together for Their Best Interest” showed in the many offerings. General session speakers demonstrated the link between poor outcomes for children in care and potential future outcomes, including health issues, poverty and prison.  Early childhood experiences including attachment and connections and ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences) were also brought to the forefront as we learned more about brain science and resilience.

This year over 1,200 participants participated in six general sessions, 51 different topics for break out sessions and a formal evening at the Awards of Excellence banquet honoring the best of the best within the CASA/GAL organization.  

The National CASA Association is quickly becoming a nationally respected thought-leader in improving outcomes for children involved in the child welfare system and a model for government and non-profit agency leadership.  As in years past, Iowa participated in the State Directors Workshop where we learned more about the new state and local program standards that will be released in 2018. We are also very fortunate to have Judge William Owens from the 8th Judicial District serving on the National CASA Association Judicial Leadership Council.  Judge Owens was able to spend a day in Boston meeting with other council members creating the plan for the future work of the Judicial Leadership Council.

Other Iowa CASA staff involved in National CASA Leadership Committees include Jim Hennessey, Administrator, serving on the State Leadership Council, Shirley Hoefer, Deputy Administrator serving on the Performance Measurement Committee and Amy Carpenter, Deputy Administrator and Aprile Goodman Local CASA Program Coordinator, both serving on the National CASA Conference Committee.  

Thank you to the Iowa delegation who attended this year’s conference:  

Kayla Eckerman, CASA Advocate

Deb Pumphrey, CASA Advocate and Coach

Dawn Bliss, CASA Advocate and Coach

Sarah Thayer, CASA Advocate and Coach

Crystal Engstrom, Local CASA Program Coordinator, Mason City and Fort Dodge

Aprile Goodman, Local CASA Program Coordinator, Ottumwa

Amy Carpenter, Iowa CASA Program Manager

Mark Hargrafen, Iowa Child Advocacy Board Chair

Judge William Owens, 8th Judicial District

For FCRB Members & CASA Advocates:   

Increased public awareness on the issue of Child Abuse occurred in the 1960’s following Dr. Kempe’s 1962 publication of the blockbuster article, The Battered Child Syndrome. Medical professionals, the media, professional research and writings on child abuse captured the public’s attention and cry for justice. This generated increased emphasis on Congress to put into place new protection services for children and their needs for safety.

The first Federal child protection legislation, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), was passed in 1974 to meet the need to further define and outline how states will ensure the safety and welfare of children. While CAPTA has been amended many times over the years the purpose of the original legislation remains intact. 

In the early 1980s, Congress made a further commitment to identify and implement solutions to child abuse. Recognizing the alarming rate at which children continued to be abused and neglected and the need for innovative programs to prevent child abuse and assist parents and families affected by maltreatment eventually led to April being declared Child Abuse Prevention Month by President Ronald Reagan in 1983.

To find Iowa specific data on the numbers of abused and neglected children go to: https://dhs.iowa.gov/reports/child-abuse-statistics. To read more how Iowa children fare in multiple areas of well-being, go to:  Annie E. Casey Foundation 2017 Kids Count Data Book.  

“The true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children.”  

- Nelson Mandela

A body of research has identified factors known to prevent and reduce child abuse and neglect. These factors—including parental resilience, nurturing and attachment, social connections, knowledge about parenting and child development, social and emotional competence of children, and concrete supports for parents—are outlined in Preventing Child Maltreatment and Promoting Well-Being: A Network for Action 2017 Resource Guide, developed by the Children's Bureau. For more information go to website to find additional resources:  National Resources

What can Advocates and Board Members do within the scope of their individual role?  Every volunteer for the Iowa Child Advocacy Board can become more aware of the signs of abuse and neglect to be better equipped to advocate for intervention if its occurring. To address known abuse or neglect within each program, volunteers advocate via recommendations to the court for services, programs, or exploration of creative avenues to build upon the protective and promotive factors of individuals and families. In essence, it’s advocating for resilience.  

The Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University distinctively explains that to understand the development of resilience one only needs to visualize a seesaw or balance scale.  “Protective experiences and coping skills on one side counterbalance significant adversity on the other.  Resilience is evident when a child’s health and development tips toward positive outcomes-even when a heavy load of factors is stacked on the negative outcome side.

The single most common factor for children who develop resilience is at least one stable and committed relationship with a supportive parent, caregiver, or other adult. These relationships provide the personalized responsiveness, scaffolding, and protection that buffer children from developmental disruption. They also build key capacities—such as the ability to plan, monitor, and regulate behavior—that enable children to respond adaptively to adversity and thrive. This combination of supportive relationships, adaptive skill-building, and positive experiences is the foundation of resilience.”

To learn more and watch accompanying videos visit and explore:  

https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/resilience/

Some of the most effective and useful recommendations that a CASA Advocate or FCRB Member can make will include both veins of recommendations: Those that help build the child’s resilience, and those that improve the protective factors of the parents and family so that the family continues on without the need for protective services in place.

Apply the Concepts to Case Scenarios:

Visit the site using the link below to read six scenarios that illustrate how multiple protective factors support and strengthen families.  

https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/preventing/preventionmonth/resources/protective-factors-in-practice/

 For CASA Advocates:  In-Service Training Credit

National CASA requires all advocates to complete an annual training on Abuse and Neglect.  We offer multiple options to meet this requirement. What is Neglect is our most recently released training that advocates can request from their Local Coordinator or the ICAB State Training Specialist at lesa.christianson@dia.iowa.gov.

KEPRO EAP On-Demand Webcast

Topic: Everything in Its Place: Getting Organized

Disorganization can waste precious time and create chaos in life. Learn skills to help minimize stress and maximize tranquility by organizing and putting everything in its place. Date:  Available on demand beginning January 16, 2018.

Broadcast Length:  50 Minutes
How to Access:  Go to the EAP website at http://www.EAPHelpLink.com.  Enter your Iowa Employee code and look for Online Seminars in the lower right-hand corner of this homepage or you can search for them by title.

For login code information, contact your
State Training Specialist.