Editor’s Note
This is Part One of a two-part series that came out of the “Our Kids” reporting project. Our Kids is a project of the reporting collaborative, which examines the challenges and opportunities facing Philadelphia’s foster care system.
So, why Philadelphia? While we generally report mostly only on issues in Los Angeles and around California, this two part series which originally ran in NEXT CITY skillfully points beyond itself to the destructive and disproportionate treatment that too many Black families, Indigenous families, and Latinx families all over the nation, including in California and, yes, in Los Angeles are experiencing when they come in contact with the child welfare system.
News Release
May 10, 2021
PHOENIX Governor Doug Ducey announced the appointment of Malcolm Hightower to Director of the Residential Utility Consumer Office (RUCO), effective today, May 10.
Hightower replaces Laurie A. Woodall, who served as Interim Director since mid-December.
“Malcolm’s years of leadership and commitment to serving communities in need make him a great fit to lead RUCO,” said Governor Ducey. “He will serve Arizona’s utility consumers well, and I look forward to working with him to ensure their needs are met. My thanks goes to Malcolm for stepping up to this role, and to Laurie for her dedicated leadership these last few months.”
The Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska announced the hire of Courtney Lewis as the child welfare attorney for the Tribe’s new Seattle-based office. As the child welfare attorney, Lewis will provide legal representation to children crime victims with the local courts of jurisdiction within the Washington area, track appellate level Indian Children
System Evaluation and Improvement Strategies
In July 2019, Maine's Office of Child and Family Services partnered with Casey Family Programs to map the major initiatives and strategies currently underway in Maine. This mapping was designed to help executive leadership and regional staff evaluate which strategies were working to produce outcomes and areas where duplication of effort or inefficiencies might exist. As a result of this work, OCFS streamlined the approach and prioritized strategies as shown below in the strategic framework.
National partnership to reinvent child welfare expands to additional states; Now in 22 locales including the White Earth Nation
Thriving Families, Safer Children: A National Commitment to Well-Being aims to move from traditional, reactive child protection systems to those designed to support child and family well-being and prevent child maltreatment and unnecessary family separations
Author:
News Release
Administration for Children & Families Health and Human Services
Casey Family Programs
Prevent Child Abuse America
Thriving Families, Safer Children: A National Commitment to Well-Being a first-of-its-kind effort of the U.S. Children’s Bureau, Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Prevent Child Abuse America® has expanded its reach to include child welfare jurisdictions in 22 states that stretch from coast to coast and a sovereign tribal nation. In announcing the addition of sites in 16 states, the District of Columbia and White Earth Nation,