One of the South Dakota Unified Judicial System’s Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) groups has been hit by federal budget cuts.
The Seventh Circuit CASA, based in Rapid City, had been awarded $25,000 in National CASA grant funding for 2025. Of the total, $5,000 was allocated for background checks and $20,000 for strategic plan demonstration. Seventh Circuit CASA had received $10,000 of the grant funding and has been notified it will not be able to access the remaining $15,000.
South Dakota CASA State Administered Organization, in collaboration with the South Dakota Unified Judicial System, is committed to providing leadership, support and encouragement to the state’s CASA programs that provide an important service to the courts and to the children involved in the court proceedings.
South Dakota’s CASA network includes eight local nonprofits, each with its own board of directors. The South Dakota CASA State Administered Organization and the South Dakota CASA Commission are administered and staffed by the Unified Judicial System. In 2024, 338 volunteers provided CASA services to 658 children in 37 counties in South Dakota. These numbers are expected to increase in 2025 with the implementation of services by new CASA programs serving the Fifth Judicial Circuit and Sixth Judicial Circuit.
The Fifth Judicial Circuit includes the following counties:
The Sixth Judicial Circuit includes the following counties:
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