EDITORIAL: Department of Child Services changes bring cautious optimism

Jun. 25--Nearly one year after an independent study confirmed grave concerns with Indiana'sDepartment of Child Services, Gov. Eric Holcomb held a news conference talking about the improvements made at the state agency.

Staff turnover is down, caseloads are shrinking and the ratio of supervisors to case managers has improved, the governor said.

DCS had come under fire in 2018, after former Director Mary Beth Bonaventura resigned, saying that cuts in funding were putting children at risk. Bonaventura went on to say she feared "lives will be lost and families ruined."

After her resignation, Holcomb hired the Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group, to review DCS practices. CWG made 20 recommendations, including improving staff training, decentralizing decisions and improving the supervisor-to-caseworker ratio.

Chris Daley, executive director of the Indiana Association of Resources and Child Advocacy, said there still are areas that need improvement. IARCA is an association of child welfare professionals that provide care for families and children in crisis.

"They definitely hired more folks and retention is better," Daley said, but they haven't seen significant improvements because the changes are so new.

There has been a significant infusion of state funding, Daley said. The state's Family and Children Fund has gone from $332 million last year to $352 million this year and is projected to go to $515 million in 2020. But that's still less than the amount of funding 10 years ago.

Last year, Holcomb redirected $25 million from the state's budget surplus to address some of the issues. But Daley said he hasn't seen the infusion of state funds to increase caseworkers' salaries. He's hopeful that will occur and be an incentive to retaining caseworkers.

As of March 2019, just over 19,000 children were receiving child welfare services in the state. That number represents a 20% decline since 2018. Of those, 95% are in a home setting, which provides more stability for children than placing them in a residential facility.

Daley hopes the governor will broaden those involved in the child welfare process by including private providers as well.

We're cautiously optimistic -- but we've heard from leaders before that they were taking steps to improve children's welfare across the state, that changes would be made, only to be let down by these promises.

Considering the shape of the DCS just a few short years ago, there have been some improvements. But more needs to be done, including more funding for salaries and training. And how about a follow-up review by CWG to make sure the recent advancements continue?

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