Cynthia
Bailes
A powerful voice in a child's
life
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60Cynthia
Bailes loves her job, but she definitely wouldn’t mind if someday
her services were obsolete.
“I always tell people that it’s the kind of work you wish
would go out of business,” she says.
Bailes is executive director of CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates)
of the Tennessee Heartland, a non-profit agency working on behalf
of abused and neglected children in the court system. It is part of
the national CASA network, which began in 1977 and now encompasses
more than 900 agencies in all 50 states.
CASA aims to expedite the process through which the court system places
abused or neglected children in permanent, safe homes.
“Once that happens, we close the case, and then it becomes extremely
difficult to measure the effectiveness of our work,” says Bailes.
“Part of it is just a leap of faith that we won’t see these
children on the front page of the paper for committing crimes.”
Bailes has been executive director of the Tennessee Heartland agency
for 10 years—considerably longer than previous directors. In
1992, she became the fourth in four years, but, unlike many others,
she has no intention of leaving.
This is good news for her branch of CASA, which was on the verge of
bankruptcy when Bailes was hired. Under her tenure, the Tennessee
Heartland agency has increased its annual budget from $32,000 to $200,000
and has expanded to include four other counties.
While she is proud of her accomplishments, she is nowhere near satisfied.
Last year, the agency served 265 children, but according to recent
statistics from the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services
more than 32,000 children were reported as victims of abuse and neglect.
“That’s what’s so frustrating,” says Bailes. “We
don’t have the resources to turn things around for all kids.”
Unlike social workers or other professionals hired by the state, CASA
volunteers handle only a few cases at a time, which allows them more
time to study a child’s situation and better determine his or
her best interest in court, says Bailes.
“We don’t answer to anyone but the children,” says
Bailes. “We aren’t locked in by notebooks of policies and
procedures, so we have more freedom to do what we think is best.”
However, what CASA thinks is best is not always what the department
of children’s services thinks is best. “Part of being an
advocate is not being afraid to make people mad,” she says. “If
we happen to agree with the state agency about what’s best for
a child, that’s great, but that’s not our job.”
To keep her mind off work when she’s not in the office, Bailes
has embarked on a second career as a student. In addition to a B.A.
degree in English and an M.S. degree in English education from the
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Bailes recently earned an associate
degree in math and an M.B.A. degree from the University of Tennessee,
Martin.
Before Bailes, a resident of Oak Ridge, took the reins at CASA, she
was the director of two domestic non-violence programs in other states.
She also has worked as a teacher in the public school system and as
a fund raiser for the March of Dimes and the Job Corps program.
“I’ve worked in non-profits all my life,” she says,
“but this is different. Children are those least able to help
themselves. When we come into their lives and turn things around for
them, we are doing it at a time when it will really make a difference.”
—Kennan
Daniel
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