Session Descriptions
Tuesday, October 29
KCN Annual Meeting
Each year, the Kentucky CASA Network hosts an annual meeting to share updates from the previous calendar year and priorities for the upcoming year. Local program staff, board members, and volunteers are invited to attend the meeting to listen, engage, and provide feedback. We want to ensure that we are effectively fulfilling our mission of supporting the development, growth, and continuation of CASA programs in Kentucky, and your input is important to us.
We will also be taking time to highlight some of the activities related to CASA's 40th Anniversary, including a screening of a documentary-style video that explores both the history and future of CASA in Kentucky.
Networking Circles
Connect with your CASA peers during this session! Volunteers, staff, directors, and board members will get a chance to convene in different groups to network, share challenges, and celebrate successes.
40th Anniversary Celebration Dinner
Join the Kentucky CASA Network as we celebrate 40 years of CASA in the Commonwealth. Children's rights lawyer Andrew Bridge will be providing a keynote address, speaking about his personal experiences in foster care and the impact that CASA volunteers have on children involved in the child welfare system. Andrew is the author of The New York Times Bestseller “Hope's Boy” and USA Today Bestseller “The Child Catcher.” We will also be presenting the 2024 CASA Volunteer of the Year and CASA All-Star awards.
Wednesday, October 30
What's Up with the Volunteer Recruitment Workgroup
The KCN's Volunteer Recruitment Workgroup (comprised of local program staff, directors, and volunteers) has been meeting monthly throughout 2024 to prepare tangible deliverables to the network to assist with volunteer recruitment activities. This interactive workshop will provide attendees an opportunity to learn about those deliverables from each topical subgroup, ask questions of workgroup members, and take home ready-to-go recruitment ideas.
How to Better Understand, Recruit and Retain Volunteers
Volunteers who believe in an organization’s mission are 80% more likely to donate and are more likely to donate 10x more money to charities than those who do not volunteer. Subsequently, donors who participate in at least one volunteer activity increase their donor retention rate by 2.5x. Volunteers and donors go hand-in-hand, and every nonprofit needs both.
In this session, we’ll focus on some best practices around data and volunteer inquiry management, tips for segmenting your volunteers, and how to double down on storytelling to connect with your audience. In addition, we'll provide tips on how to recruit more volunteers from your online giving and event registration forms. This session will also discuss strategies for maintaining contact with potential volunteers over time, as well as the two-way relationship between volunteers and donors.
Session Facilitator: Jack Nelson, Director of Business Development, Qgiv by Bloomerang
Pitching CASA: Crafting a Clear and Compelling Elevator Speech
This session will equip participants to effectively communicate what CASA is and the impact of a CASA volunteer in a clear compelling pitch. Attendees will leave the session understanding the components of effective pitches, practice crafting and delivering elevator speeches, receive feedback, and compile/share best practices for pitching potential volunteers.
Let's Get Strategic: Fine-Tuning Your Community Engagement Efforts
This session will focus on effective community engagement and outreach. Participants will learn about partnership-building strategies, skills and strategic planning related to tabling at outreach events, and the importance of analyzing return on investment (ROI) when determining when to say "yes" or "no" to event invitations.
