What can be more terrifying to a small child than to be removed from home and placed with people — as well-meaning as they are — with whom the child is unfamiliar? When the Department of Children and Families confronts a decision about whether to remove a child from his or her parents, staff work closely with the extended family and other “natural supports” to see if the child can be safely maintained at home or, if not, whether a safe alternative exists to the trauma of placing the child with strangers in a traditional foster home.
Joette Katz
Posted inCT Viewpoints
In Connecticut juvenile justice, children get many second chances
A two-part series in the Connecticut Mirror this week asked the question of whether youth who break the law in Connecticut receive a second chance. It focused on the relatively small share of youth in the juvenile justice system who are placed in secure settings rather than the vast majority who receive services at home and in the community. What the article left out is that youths who are committed by Juvenile Court judges to the Department of Children and Families and placed at the Connecticut Juvenile Training School have received many second chances before that point.
Posted inEducation
Op-Ed: Those who ‘opt out’ of state care pose a particular challenge for DCF
With improvements to the health of the child welfare system under Gov. Malloy’s Administration — and more children in alternative settings to state care — comes the challenge to improve outcomes for the teenagers who make up an increasing share of those who remain in the system.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Op-Ed: Those who ‘opt out’ of state care pose a particular challenge for DCF
With improvements to the health of the child welfare system under Gov. Malloy’s Administration — and more children in alternative settings to state care — comes the challenge to improve outcomes for the teenagers who make up an increasing share of those who remain in the system.
Posted inNews
Child Protection: A system crying for change
The Connecticut Department of Children and Families has adopted a “differential response system” that allows its caseworkers more flexibility in reacting to various kinds of child abuse and neglect, depending on the risk to the family. Families and staff say this new kind of intervention is more effective, satisfying and respectful.