College-Led Training for Addiction Counselors and Court Volunteers
A Statewide Workforce Model That Grew From a Buckhannon Pilot
West Virginia Wesleyan College used opioid settlement funding to train Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and other child welfare advocates through locally developed simulations and expand addiction-counseling scholarships statewide, reaching more than 100 CASA staff and volunteers and distributing $44,250 through 10 scholarship awards.
The Challenge They Were Addressing
CASA staff and volunteers in West Virginia needed training to address the family situations they encountered during home visits and court involvement. Those situations could involve opioid use disorder alongside intergenerational trauma, parental loss, and repeated contact with child protective services. Through her service on the CASA of Harrison County board, Dr. Jen Randall Reyes, program director in the WVWC Department of Counseling, heard requests for practice scenarios that reflected those experiences.
The counseling workforce faced a separate training need. WVWC's Department of Counseling already had clinical mental health and addiction counseling specializations, as well as a Certificate in Addiction Counseling. Its addiction counseling specialization is the first offered in a master's-level program in West Virginia. Tuition costs could keep residents and workers from pursuing that additional education. When Buckhannon officials approached the college about using the city's opioid settlement allocation, the department proposed scholarships tied to an existing training program.
Both projects were built on relationships that were already in place. CASA programs connected the college with child welfare advocates, and the city and a local behavioral health provider supported the scholarship pilot. WVWC later sought West Virginia First Foundation funding to extend the work beyond its immediate community and establish the Center for Addiction & Trauma.
What They Built
Through the center, WVWC's Department of Counseling operates two settlement-funded programs. One provides simulation training for CASA staff and volunteers, and the other provides scholarships for students pursuing the Certificate in Addiction Counseling. Faculty across disciplines develop and test the simulations.
For the CASA program, researchers conducted focus groups and pilot work to identify training needs. The team used that information to create scenarios for a VirTra simulator, a system that was originally used in law enforcement de-escalation training. More than 100 staff and volunteers attended a two-day Summer Institute on WVWC's campus. Their feedback informed a second set of scenarios for planned regional sessions in late 2026 and early 2027.
The scholarship program began locally in 2025 with the City of Buckhannon and Community Care of West Virginia. WVWC then received a $250,000 foundation award to expand access statewide. The foundation scholarship provides $4,500 for eligible applicants living or working in Region 4 and $3,750 for those elsewhere in West Virginia. The city continues to support local awards.
WVWC also agreed to provide at least one professional development opportunity per quarter for local first responders through its city partnership. The center's longer-term plans include recurring Summer Institutes, community needs assessments, and program evaluation. The center is seeking additional funding to support that work.
Key Program Components
Who You Need at the Table
What made a willing partner essential vs. optional?
WVWC supplied the certificate program, CASA partners recruited training participants, and the city and foundation provided settlement funding. The college needed CASA staff and volunteers to describe their work before it could create useful simulations. The city partnership established the scholarship model that WVWC later presented to the foundation. A replicating community would need organizations capable of performing those functions.
Community Care's contribution added another source of tuition support in the local pilot. The quarterly professional development agreement also gave city partners training for their employees while scholarship recipients pursued additional education.
Budget Breakdown
What is the minimum viable budget to replicate this?
A community starting with the scholarship component would need an existing addiction-counseling training provider, a scholarship fund, and staff time for recruitment and award administration. At WVWC's $4,500 award level, 10 scholarships would require $45,000 before administrative or other program costs. A community seeking to reproduce the CASA component would need a separate budget for training development, staff, equipment access, and delivery. The interview did not establish a total minimum cost for either component.
What Worked and Why
Specific decisions or design features that drove success
WVWC used the certificate program that its counseling department already operated to launch the scholarship pilot, and city funding supported tuition assistance. Enrollment records show one scholarship-supported student in fall 2025, one in spring 2026, and eight in fall 2026. These term counts show participation, not the number of unique students.
The WVWC team asked WV CASA staff and volunteers about their training needs before writing scenarios. Faculty used focus groups and pilot work to adapt the instruction to home visits, court involvement, and families affected by opioid use disorder. Feedback from the Summer Institute then informed the next round of scenarios.
The city agreement paired the scholarships with a benefit for the city's own workforce. WVWC committed to at least one professional development opportunity per quarter for local first responders, and the program director described those training relationships as one of the partnership's strongest early results.
The statewide scholarship retained a regional priority through different award amounts. In fall 2026, four students received Region 4 foundation scholarships, and one received a foundation scholarship outside the region. Three others received city scholarships. The available records document participation and funding distribution. Certificate completion, credential attainment, employment retention, and changes in family outcomes remain to be documented.
Early outcomes and data
The inaugural Summer Institute brought more than 100 West Virginia CASA staff and volunteers to campus for two days of training.
WVWC recorded 10 scholarship awards totaling $44,250 across fall 2025, spring 2026, and fall 2026. These figures combine city and foundation support.
Of the eight students in the fall 2026 cohort, four were from Upshur County, two from Monongalia County, one from Raleigh County, and one from Wirt County.
The fall 2026 awards totaled $35,250. City funds supplied $13,500, and foundation funds supplied $21,750.
The program reported remaining scholarship funding for a spring 2027 cohort. The team also planned regional CASA training for late 2026 and early 2027.
Lessons Learned
Develop the work in phases. WVWC established a local scholarship partnership before seeking statewide funding. The CASA team similarly used participant feedback from the campus institute to prepare its next round of training.
Build the schedule around recruitment and enrollment. WVWC sought an extension to reach another academic cohort. Future awards should account for the time between recruitment, admission, and course entry.
Plan continued funding while the pilot is operating. WVWC began seeking additional grants while the center still depended on settlement funding. Recurring training and evaluation services are part of its plan for continued operations.