Press Releases
Unmanageable Caseloads in South Carolina Foster Care Put Children at Risk, Report Shows
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org State lags behind needed reforms, with inadequate staffing and statewide lack of resources putting children in danger (Charleston, S.C.) — South Carolina’s Department of Social Services (DSS) is not meeting court-ordered requirements to improve care for the more than 4,500 children in the state’s child welfare system, a new report […]
August 22, 2018Children’s Welfare Organizations Release Guide to Supporting LGBTQ Youth In Georgia’s Child Welfare System
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org New guide identifies strategies for addressing challenges faced by LGBTQ youth in state care ATLANTA – Child welfare providers in Georgia should implement a range of best practices in order to better meet the needs of LGBTQ youth, according to a new guide entitled Fostering Family, a Guide to Working […]
August 20, 2018In Connecticut Child Welfare, Latest Report Shows Steady Progress Under Reform Lawsuit
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org Improvements Under Federal Court Oversight Down to 10 as DCF Achieves Successful Exit Over 4 More Goals, Including Sustained Reduction in Housing Children in Group Facilities (Bridgeport, CT) – Today an independent court monitor released the latest report on Connecticut’s ongoing efforts to improve its child welfare system, showing […]
July 20, 2018Lawsuit Challenging Overmedication of Children in Missouri Foster Care Moves Forward, Judge Rules
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org “Too Many, Too Much, and Too Young”: Children in Missouri Foster Care Subjected to Powerful Psychotropics (Kansas City, MO) — In a major step forward for children in the state’s foster care system, a federal court in Missouri has granted class action status in M.B. v. Corsi, a lawsuit […]
June 7, 2018DCS Continues to Sustain Progress Since Exit from Lawsuit, New Report Shows
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org (Nashville, TN) — A new External Accountability Center report shows that Tennessee’s Department of Children’s Services (DCS) continues to sustain progress made during the 17-year effort to reform its child welfare system. This is the second in a series of three reports created by an External Accountability Center as […]
May 10, 2018New Report Reveals Alarming Safety Concerns in Michigan’s Child Welfare System
Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org (DETROIT) — A new report on the status of Michigan’s child welfare system reveals serious ongoing safety concerns for children in the state’s care. From mishandled reports of maltreatment to improperly licensed homes, the report shows a disturbing trend regarding the Department of Health and Human Services’ (DHHS) continued failure to […]
May 9, 2018Victory for Rhode Island’s Children: Fairness Hearing Brings Resolution to Long-Standing Foster Care Case
Court Approves Historic Agreement to Greatly Improve the Lives of Children in State Care Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org (Providence, RI) – Following a fairness hearing held on Wednesday, May 9th, a federal court in Providence has approved the settlement agreement in a longstanding class action to greatly improve practices and outcomes for children in state care. […]
April 18, 2018Florida Foster Care Suit Moves Forward, Federal Court Rejects State Agencies’ Attempt to Dismiss
Judge Says Complaint “Alleges in Unmistakable Clarity” that DCF Routinely Puts Children at Risk of Harm Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org A federal court in Tallahassee ruled on April 17, 2018 that a new class action civil rights lawsuit targeting specific failings in the Miami-Dade/Monroe Counties’ child welfare system should be allowed to proceed. Defendants had […]
April 13, 2018Report: Progress for Children in Milwaukee Foster Care
(New York, NY) – Today state reviewers issued a report tracking the progress of The Wisconsin Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare (BMCW) covering January to December 2017. The report can be found here. Children’s Rights and co-counsel filed the federal class action known as Jeanine B. v. Walker in 1993, charging that the Milwaukee child […]
April 6, 2018“Too Little Has Changed” for Children and Families Served by South Carolina Child Welfare System, Latest Report Finds
A “system driven by crisis” requiring urgent work to meet improvements for children in the state’s care Contact: Daniel Kessel, 646-216-3343, dkessel@childrensrights.org (Charleston, S.C.) — Independent, court-appointed monitors filed their second report on South Carolina’s efforts to reform its foster care system, finding that the Department of Social Services (DSS) has not made sufficient progress in many […]