Learning center
We offer continuing education opportunities for all volunteers, ambassadors, and supporters through webinars and workshops, along with in-person and virtual training
Know and Tell - Preventing, recognizing, and reporting child abuse
CASA volunteers are invited to join us from 1-3:30pm on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at the Elizabeth Office, OR from 6-8:30pm on Monday, June 8, 2026 at the Wayne Office, for Know and Tell training, presented by the New Jersey Children’s Alliance. This interactive training aims to provide participants with the knowledge and confidence needed to protect and help a child victimized by abuse and/or neglect get the appropriate support.
Volunteers will learn:
About the legal definitions of neglect, physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, and the NJ state laws on reporting.
How to recognize signs of child abuse as well as warning signs of grooming and online danger.
About steps that adults can take to keep children safe from abuse.
How to recognize the barriers to reporting, and how to overcome them.
When and how to make a report to the Child Abuse Hotline (State Central Registry.)
How the child protection system in NJ – including Child Advocacy Centers, Multidisciplinary Teams, and other stakeholders – work together to respond to child abuse.
Virtual training courses for NJ CASA volunteers, available online through Traliant:
Courtroom Procedures
The Effects of Trauma On A Child's Developing Brain
Opioid Addiction
Individual Education Plans and the Special Education System
Educational Advocacy
Child Development During the Early Years
CASA Medical Advocacy
Access to Traliant requires a login and password. If you're not sure how to log in, please contact Annie at annie@casapassaicunion.org.
CASA of NJ CASA College
CASA of New Jersey’s CASA College has regular virtual training classes available for all advocates.
Understanding Poverty, April 1 from 10am-12pm
Understanding Poverty aims to deepen advocates’ awareness of the systemic barriers affecting children and families. This session will explore how economic hardship influences education, housing stability, health outcomes, and involvement in the child welfare system. Volunteers will gain practical tools to recognize the impact of poverty on the children they serve and to make more informed, empathetic recommendations in court reports and advocacy efforts.
Working with Intense Personalities, April 8 from 10am-12pm
If you’ve ever walked away from an interaction thinking, “Wow... that person is a lot,” this training is for you! We’ll talk about how to recognize intense personalities, what may be driving the behavior beneath the surface, and practical strategies for responding effectively. We’ll also explore how to support children who struggle to communicate and often seek negative attention with the goal of helping challenging children channel their intense energy into positive behaviors.
History of Race in Child Welfare, April 15 from 10am-12pm
Racial equity is a core value within the CASA network, and we are committed to ensuring that our advocates, board, and staff recognize the policies and practices that contribute to the disproportionate representation of children of color within the foster care system. Learn more from Dr. Carol Spigner as she focuses on the history and impact of race in the child welfare systems.
CASA College archives
After completing a CASA of NJ or CASA College archived training, please complete the In-service Review Form and send to Annie at annie@casapassaicunion.org
Learning resources
CASA 101
For Kids
How To Write A Court Report
Court Report Template
Book Review
Form
In-service
Review Form
National CASA/GAL Association 2023 Archived Webinars
This catalog features a series of webinars hosted by the National CASA/GAL Association for Children throughout 2023. Topics include:
Tips and Technology: CASA/GAL Witness Testimony
Advancing Education Rights, and Addressing Barriers for Students in Care
Understanding Relationships and Their Importance to Early Childhood Development
Mental Health Essentials Part One: Foundations of Mental Health
Mental Health Essentials Part Two: Strategies to Support & Promote Mental Health
Through the Eyes of the Child: Exploring Protective Factors and Supporting Resiliency
On-Demand Training on Problematic Sexual Behavior (PSB) in Children and Adolescents
Understanding and Serving Children with PSBs (2-hours, 3 minutes)
NOTE: You must register for the training. You will then receive a link to the recording. You cannot close out of the training once you begin it. If you close out of the training before completing the short quiz at the end, you will need to contact katherine@njcainc.org to send you a link so that you may resume the training where you left off.
Training series on working with children and youth with PSB (four x 30-minute modules)
Overview of PSBs
Special Considerations for CACs
Treatment Response
Community Engagement
NOTE: You must create a login to view the free training series. Use code 15462 for the organizational ID when creating your account.
Understanding and Serving Adolescents with PSBs (2-hours, 44 minutes)
NOTE: You must register for the training. You will then receive a link to the recording. You cannot close out of the training once you begin it. If you close out of the training before completing the short quiz at the end, you will need to contact katherine@njcainc.org to send you a link so that you may resume the training where you left off.
Perceptions and Practices of CACs and their Community Partners in Serving Children and Adolescents with Problematic Sexual Behavior (90 minutes)
NOTE: You must create a login to view the free training series. Use code 15462 for the organizational ID when creating your account.
Training Series from OneOp, Problematic Sexual Behavior of Children and Youth (PSB-CY): Clinical Assessment and Treatment
This training series provides professional development for clinically assessing, responding to, and treating PSB-CY. These courses were created from evidence-based best practices and focus on youth between the ages of 9 and 14 with problematic sexual behaviors (PSB).
Clinical Assessment of Children and Youth with PSB (90 minutes)
Caregiver Engagement in Assessment and Treatment (90 minutes)
Clinical Decision-making and Treatment Planning (90 minutes)
Monitoring, Safety Planning, Supervision, and Treatment Progress (90 minutes)
NOTE: You must create a login to view the free training series. This series recommends seven prerequisite webinars. Five are included above. The content of the remaining two is covered in the first webinar, Understanding and Serving Children with PSB.
Engaging families with youth with problematic sexual behaviors in mental health services (105 minutes)
NOTE: You must create a login to view the free training series. Use code 15462 for the organizational ID when creating your account.
Training Series from OneOp, Sexual Behavior in Children and Youth
This training series addresses normal sexual behavior in children in addition to exploring cautionary and problematic sexual behavior (PSB) that children may display. Various factors associated with children’s sexual behavior are identified in order to assist clinicians in understanding the appropriate assessment and disclosure processes involved when problematic symptoms are present.
Culturally Competent Responses to Youth with Problematic Sexual Behavior (90 minutes)
Supporting Youth to Set Healthy Boundaries with Technology (90 minutes)
Considering the Adolescent Brain When Addressing Problematic Sexual Behavior of Youth (90 minutes)
Talking with Youth about Sex, Sexuality, and Media (90 minutes)
Modeling Healthy Technology Behaviors for Young Children (90 minutes)
NOTE: You must create a login to view the free training series.
Additional training and resources
Fact Sheets & White Papers
Media suggestions for additional reading, watching and listening
To receive In-Service credit after reading/watching/listening, please complete the Book Review Form or In-Service Review form above and send it to your Advocacy Supervisor; then enter the In-Service hours directly on the Training page in Optima.
Books
“The Journal of Best Practices: A Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man's Quest to Be a Better Husband” by David Finch
“Three Little Words: A Memoir” by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
“A Beautiful Boy” by David Sheff
“Tweak: Growing Up on Amphetamines” by Nic Sheff
“The Leavers” by Lisa Ko
“Good Morning, Monster: A Therapist Shares Five Heroic Stories of Emotional Recovery” by Catherine Gildiner
“What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing” by Oprah Winfrey and Bruce D. Perry
“Bright Burning Things” by Lisa Harding
“This is All I Got” by Lauren Sandler
“The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog” by Bruce D. Perry
“Demon Copperheard” by Barbara Kingsolver
Movies/Documentaries
“Maid,” 2021
"Paper Tigers," 2015
“Instant Family,” 2018
“They Have Names”, a documentary film by AZCentral and The Arizona Republic that follows five families navigating Arizona's child welfare system, highlighting the human stories behind the numbers
Podcasts
NPR’s Fresh Air, “The Neuroscience of Addiction”
NPR, The Connection Between Early Childhood Experiences and Long Term Health
NPR, Adverse Childhood Experience Study
NPR, How Childhood Trauma Affects Adult Health