Name: Kate Rendell
Company: Court Appointed Special Advocates of Southwest Michigan Inc.
What Does Your Company/Organization Do? Court Appointed Special Advocates of Southwest Michigan, CASA serves the region’s most vulnerable children; those who have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect, or other adversity that makes the foster care experience especially difficult. CASA recruits and extensively trains volunteer advocates (30+ hours) who are trauma-informed and willing to devote time and attention to youth in foster care through a Court Order. They learn their children’s stories and specific needs, advocating for those needs throughout their time in the court system. Our overarching organizational goals are to match volunteers to every child in need and to ensure that every child assigned to a CASA Volunteer finds a safe and permanent home, with their needs met while in foster care.
Age: 38
Education: Bachelors of Social Work and Political Science Magna Cum Laude
Accomplishments:
Since 2017, I have been advocating for children who are navigating foster care at a local level and at a state level. Notably I have been involved with CASA as a volunteer, an advocate supervisor in Kent County and now Executive Director serving Berrien and St. Joseph Counties. While completing my double major in Social Work and Political Science I was fortunate enough to do a lengthy paralegal internship with the impact litigation organization Children’s Rights. Where I provided administrative support on two legal teams; the Michigan legal team who represents plaintiffs in the Dwayne B. v. Snyder consent decree and a Juvenile Justice Rights Project that advocates as part of a coalition on behalf of youth who are incarcerated on Rikers Island Jail in New York City.
Current City: Covert
Place You Were Born: St. Joseph, Michigan
What was your first job? Splitting and stacking wood with my family.
What motivates you to give back to your community? I deeply feel it is my moral obligation. I come from a long line of civic minded family members.
What Superpower would you most love to have? My superpower would be to open peoples hearts, to make them more openminded, empathic and dissolve their ability to “other” another person.
What would you like to leave behind as your legacy once you are gone? I hope my legacy is that I can inspire others to never settle. To always look how can we improve the lives of children and to know that childhood is a sacred time in our life.
