CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Gov. Dave Freudenthal announced today that the Department of Family Services will partner with Casey Family Programs, a national nonprofit foundation, to work toward improving services to abused and neglected children in the foster care system and to children at risk of abuse or neglect.
Freudenthal said the partnership would primarily involve a two-year loan of a Casey executive to serve as the state’s administrator for foster care, adoption and child protective service at the Wyoming Department of Family Services.
Under the terms of the agreement, longtime Wyoming Casey Field Office Director Brendan McKinney would be named the new administrator for the DFS Division for Child Protective Services, effective immediately.
“This unprecedented partnership in the social services arena brings the government and a nationally recognized foundation together to reach better solutions for Wyoming’s young people,” Freudenthal said. “We can and should do this important work together.”
Wyoming already exceeds national standards in moving children from foster care to adoption in less than two years and preventing children from re-entering the foster care system. But the state places youth in foster care at a rate six times higher than the national average, at a cost of $32 million each year. More than 1,600 youth are currently in out-of-home care, with 800 in the state’s foster care system.
“Our challenge is to create better supports for families and help communities and private providers adapt to this changing philosophy,” said DFS Director Rodger McDaniel. “Casey has developed many of the best practices for helping children and families succeed, and we hope Casey can help DFS, communities and providers expand this capacity in Wyoming.”
McDaniel said the public-private partnership will focus on achieving the federally mandated Program Improvement Plan (PIP). He said staff from Casey Family Programs and the state will work to:
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Increase the number of placements with kin and family supports and the availability of services to youth transitioning out of the child welfare system.
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Develop and facilitate the implementation of “best practices” as related to safety, permanency and well-being of children and families. This also includes addressing issues of disproportional minority children in the state’s child welfare system.
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Implement a Family-Centered Practice approach, which will result in an increase in all Adoption and Safe Families Act outcomes, including safety, permanency and child well-being.
“We are committed to the success of Wyoming’s youth in foster care,” said Carol Boone, vice president of Systems Improvement at Casey Family Programs. “We applaud the state’s leadership to meet this challenge with innovative solutions and partnerships. Casey brings four decades of direct service experience. We have much to learn from each other.”
McDaniel praised McKinney’s experience with public and private foster care systems. “Brendan has a reputation as one of the best in the Wyoming’s Youth Services Association,” McDaniel said, referring to the state’s network of private, nonprofit youth treatment providers.
“I feel that this agreement caps our efforts to build the strongest administrative team possible to lead the department for the next few years,” McDaniel said.
He noted the term of service for McKinney was expected to be two years, at which time he would return to his field duties full-time for Casey Family.
Other Casey executives on hand for the governor’s announcement included Casey Chief Operating Officer Steve Gordon; Executive Vice-President of Child and Family Services Jim Marquart; and Vice President of Systems Improvement Carol Boone.