October 18, 2014
Nearly a decade has passed since Gov. Mitch Daniels created the Department of Child Services to protect children from abuse and neglect. It was and continues to be a wise move to split the agency from the behemoth Family and Social Services Administration in an effort — as we said in 2004 — to increase the state's “responsiveness and responsibility.”
October 18, 2014
In Lake County, a disfigured 2-month-old whose mother did not want him is left alone in a motel room for 90 minutes, and is later found smothered. His family had been the subject of 38 prior investigations by the state's child welfare agency.
October 15, 2014
Republican Gov. Rick Scott repeatedly tells voters that abused and neglected children are safer under his leadership than when his Democratic opponent Charlie Crist was governor, but an Associated Press examination of that claim shows that campaign claim may be an exaggeration.
October 10, 2014
The state of Washington has agreed to pay a record amount to settle a case of child abuse and neglect.
October 8, 2014
For several years, CASA volunteers and staff around the country have been concerned about an ominous trend. Despite a general decline in the number of children in foster care, the family courts were requesting more volunteer advocates for more and more foster youth. Additionally, the children who had CASA and guardian ad litem advocates were coming from more challenging home situations. It is a sadly familiar pattern we have seen after previous recessions.
October 8, 2014
Children who are emotionally abused and neglected face similar and sometimes worse mental health problems as children who are physically or sexually abused, yet psychological abuse is rarely addressed in prevention programs or in treating victims, according to a new study published by the American Psychological Association.
October 6, 2014
BOSTON —Democrats turned the tables on Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Baker Monday, accusing him of failing the Department of Children and Families while cabinet secretary for former Gov. William Weld.
October 2, 2014
“My teacher called me the ‘F' word,” one former foster youth mumbled during a “Pain to Power” meeting held by the RightWay Foundation. Twelve transitional-aged youth sat around a table that filled the room. At first everyone looked confused, trying to figure out which of the many ‘F' words the teacher could have thrown at him.
October 7, 2014
Child deaths in families involved with the state Department of Children and Families are more likely in cases where agency workers have spent less time assessing and interacting with parents, a preliminary review by the agency indicates.
October 5, 2014
The Agency of Human Services report on the Department for Children and Families disappoints by failing to make the explicit connection between transparency and public accountability within the child welfare system.