who is CASA?

CASA in Davidson County consists of a small dedicated staff and about 250 volunteers. Staff members include:

Jane Andrews: Executive Director jandrews@casa-nashville.org

HIre date:  November, 2005
Jane Andrews, Nashville business executive and community leader, serves as Executive Director. Ms. Andrews was CEO of Nashville Rehabilitation Hospital for eight years and has held numerous community leadership positions including founding President of Rediscover East – an important and ongoing community development program created in the aftermath of the East Nashville Tornadoes.

Ms. Andrews, an alumnus of Leadership Nashville, is a member of CABLE and has been particularly active in community issues of importance to the Edgefield area in which she lives and in which the CASA offices are located.

She brings proven management skills and experience to CASA along with her passion for public service.

Ms. Andrews holds a BA Degree from Scarritt College in Behavioral Science.

Beth Frankenberg, Program Director - bfrankenberg@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  October, 2001

Beth joined CASA as an advocate supervisor in 2001. She previously worked for Davidson County Juvenile Court as a probation officer in the Family Services Division. She received her undergraduate degree in Sociology from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Cindy Johnson, Volunteer Coordinator - cindyjohnson@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  May, 2001

Cindy Johnson accepted the position of Volunteer Coordinator in August of 2005 after serving as an Advocate Supervisor since 2001. She has a Bachelor of Science degree from David Lipscomb University and previously worked for the Department of Children’s Services as a social counselor in foster care and adoptions. She also worked as a probation officer with the Davidson County Juvenile Court in the area of neglect/dependency.

Brenda Thompson, Advocate Supervisor - bthompson@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date: January, 1996

Brenda earned a Bachelor of Social Welfare degree from East Tennessee State University and was employed as a case worker at the Department of Human Services from 1975 to 1982. She worked in the private sector for approximately 14 years and returned to the work she loves at the Davidson County CASA program in January of 1996.

Suzanne Harrison, Advocate Supervisor - sharrison@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  August, 2006

Suzanne joined CASA in August 2006 as an Advocate Supervisor but she has been a Volunteer Advocate since 1996.  Suzanne was voted Court Appointed Special Advocate of the Year by the Young Lawyer's Division of The Tennessee State Bar Association for 2006. 

Courtney Thompson, Advocate Supervisor - cthompson@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  September, 2007

Courtney joined CASA as an Advocate Supervisor in September of 2007. She previously worked as a case manager for Department of Child Protective Services in Weatherford, Texas. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work from Texas Christian University.

Stephanie Mullins, Advocate Supervisor - smullins@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date: May, 2010

Stephanie joined CASA after working with Prospect, Inc. as a Residential Manpower Planning Coordinator. Prior to that position, she spent five years with the Department of Children's Services in Wilson County, TN, where she served as a Case Manager in the social services, juvenile justice, resource placement, and foster parent support unit. Stephanie graduated from Cumberland University in 2000 with a B.A. in Criminal Justice.

Jenny Magill, Public Relations Associate - jmagill@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  September, 2007
Jenny joined CASA in September 2007 as Public Relations Associate through the AmeriCorps VISTA program as a volunteer and then was hired full time in 2008. Jenny is from Atlanta, Georgia and received her dual bachelor's degrees in Education Studies and History from Vanderbilt University.

Tove Gunnarson, Office Manager - tgunnarson@casa-nashville.org

Hire Date:  August, 2009

Tove joined CASA in August 2009 after 10 years in commercial and residential real estate as an affiliate Broker and Office Manager. Tove earned her B.A. in Physical Therapy at the University of Lund, Sweden, where she grew up. Tove is fluent in Swedish and loves to travel.