Commitment to improving child welfare ‘very strong,’ says Clark County commissioner
There was a forcefulness in Nevada Supreme Court Justice Nancy Saitta’s voice as she presented a 60-page report that called for significant reform of Clark County’s child welfare and court systems.
Squabbles between defense lawyers and prosecutors don’t matter. Differences between government agencies are irrelevant.
“We will all accept a share of our responsibility for the children and the youth,” the justice said. “We will all work together and do what ever is necessary so that we can move forward for Clark County kids.”
Saitta emphasized the phrase “we will all” both times. The end result, she said, must be “better outcomes for the children who find themselves in our system.”
The report, which was issued by a nine-person state Blue Ribbon for Kids Commission led by Saitta, examined shortcomings in the child welfare system, pointing out that the system was “overtaxed and under stress,” lacked necessary resources, delayed getting foster children needed health care and was distrusted by the public.
The report also recommended careful monitoring of Child Haven, the county’s emergency shelter for abused and neglected children. More respite homes are needed to relieve foster families so that children placed with them are not left at the shelter because of emergencies or planned vacations, the report said.
The report included a few dozen recommendations and a “road map” to make those changes to the child welfare system in the county.
At a Friday blue ribbon panel meeting at the Regional Justice Center, Saitta said that some of those changes can be made with little effort. For instance, having one judge deal with one family throughout a case.
Other changes will cost money, including updating technology to better and more quickly get case plans to families, enhance foster parent training and further train those workers in the system and run a marketing and education plan aimed at changing the image of the child dependency system in the public’s eyes.
The blue ribbon panel included Clark County Commissioner Susan Brager and assistant county manager Jeff Wells, who oversees the Department of Family Services and the Department of Juvenile Justice.
“The county is going to take all of this very seriously and work very hard on trying to do some of the implementation efforts that directly (points) toward our departments,” Wells said during the meeting.
Afterward, he said “There’s always room for improvement. And that’s the part the county agrees with.”
For her part, Commissioner Brager was more vigorous in her thoughts on making changes. “I’m going to be pretty relentless,” she said. “If we can’t get all the funding we need, that can’t be a deterrent. So we need to figure out how we do it anyway.”
Brager said she believes her fellow commissioners realize the importance of reforming the system. “The commitment is very strong,” she said.
This must be a top priority, she said.
In the coming weeks, the blue ribbon panel will break off into separate committees, headed by commissioners and insisting on support from different stakeholders to make the changes recommended.
One such change is to make sure children moved into the foster care system stay in the same schools. It’s imperative, Saitta said, that foster children have familiarity in their education settings when their home settings are changing.
There have been issues with the Clark County School District transporting students from a foster home back to the school they were originally in due to cost, Saitta said. The resources must be found, she said.
And while the district does not have a member on the blue ribbon panel, it will be asked to participate in making changes, Saitta said.
Saitta doubted anyone would turn her down because the goals are too important, she said.
And transparency must be a key component of reform in order to regain the public trust in the system, Saitta said.
Contact Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or702-224-5512. Find him on Twitter: @fjmccabe
