<p><strong>(Fort Wayne) News-Sentinel</strong></p>
<p>In December, Indiana Department of Child Services Director Mary Beth Bonaventura wrote a scathing letter of resignation that accused Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb’s administration of making management changes and service cuts that “all but ensure children will die.”</p>
<p>The former Lake County Juvenile Court judge said she chose to resign rather than be involved in the decreasing safety and well-being of Hoosier children.</p>
<p>Since 2010, DCS has had a 65 percent increase in the number of court cases that allege a child has suffered abuse or neglect, and the number of children in the system more than doubled to 29,000. That has resulted in higher staff caseloads, more staff time in court and higher DCS costs.</p>
<p>Since Bonaventura’s resignation, newspapers across the state have called for action to remedy the crisis in the DCS and demanded the governor and Indiana Legislature to do something.</p>
<p>The Legislature would not take on the DCS issues during this year’s session. However, the governor responded in December by appointing Terry Stigdon, clinical director of operations for Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, as the new director.</p>
<p>Holcomb also directed the Indiana Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group to evaluate several issues, including uses of DCS funding, what systems ensure the health and safety of children and families, whether staffing levels are appropriate and how DCS’s caseloads, costs and outcomes compare to those in other states.</p>
<p>Now, the governor pledged action after announcing the results of that review, which found dysfunction, a perceived lack of resources and a “culture of fear” among the many problems at the agency.</p>
<p>What the group listed in its findings, according to The Associated Press, were:</p>
<p>•“A culture of fear” has led workers to place concern over “personal liability related to actions” above the “long-term well-being of children.”</p>
<p>•Nearly 45 percent of family case managers have caseloads that are greater than the standard set by state law.</p>
<p>•The agency has a high rate of turnover driven by low morale and low pay.</p>
<p>•A bureaucratic agency culture has made some caseworkers reluctant to request sometimes-costly services for children in need.</p>
<p>•The amount of money spent on drug testing is five times greater than the amount spent on drug treatment.</p>
<p>Holcomb’s pledge to action included $25 million from the state’s budget surplus to pay for raises for DCS workers as well as implementing of some of the report’s recommendations, many of which centered on providing a better work experience for those in DCS. Five different reviews of the DCS in recent years found similar issues, but Holcomb said the documents were shelved with limited action taken.</p>
<p>We are encouraged by the governor’s stated commitment to finally fix this broken state service agency. Now we’re counting on him to honor his State of the State address promise to “do whatever is necessary to ensure the success of our agency and its mission.”</p>
