SIII_GB_Actions23_Exh1_AgendaNotes_DFCS_CIP_CollabMtg010610.doc
CIP, DFCS, OCA
Collaborative Meeting
1/06/10
Agenda:
Michelle Barclay, Christopher Church, Katherine Herren, Melissa Carter, Isabel Blanco, Susan Denney, Rebecca Mason
I. Open discussion (additional topics to be discussed)Isabel Blanco
Melissa Carter Acting Director for the CIP as Tom has resigned
PIP Progress
Meeting with Linda Mitchell. Aware of what is going on impacts on courts seeing the changes. Include CIP and OCA as well. Elizabeth Williamson from AG office, Judge Walker, Judge Keys, Sharon Carlson or Davis Elliott from AFPAG, Representative from Homes for Children Provider Community Set pre-meeting to discuss the points to focus on….
Compile document of documentation for approval…..
II. Judicial Summits/Cold Case ReviewsMichelle Barclay
FloydCounty Summitt. Went really well Judge Pape was very engaged..cynical about the agency.
Waycross Circuit on Jan 21st. Ware , Bacon, Pierce, Brantley, Charlton and CoffeeCounty high number of children in foster care per capita. Can Isabel come to present…in Seattle on that date with Casey. Kathy Herren can do it
Feb 26th Valdosta Circuit Isabel can attend…LowndesCounty, Brooks, Vicki Townsend. Very engaged and coordinating. Judges and SAAGs need to be engaged…
III. CIP Updates & ConcernsMichelle Barclay
Gwinnett Cold Case Review
Contract for the Gwinnett file review has been signed. Ashley is setting up the files for review.
Fultoncold case files are beginning this month.
Cold Case files have reviewed 217 as of this month
Casey has responded optimistically to the consideration of funding the legal cold case files.
It is proposed to do a combination of the roundtable and cold case with a hybrid approach to selecting the cases to be reviewed. Cases can then be used in supervisory summits.
Update on Wade's case
PickensCounty. Four Action Steps: case manager go visit with the child, appoint attorney as he is a legal orphan, unseal his birth records, very little movement on the case, approach coach (child expressed a desire to have) to be the child’s adult connection. Request made straight to the state office if need is related directly to the permanency of the child. County office seems to be holding onto the request. Michelle is going to write the Pickens Director inquiring as to what the activity is on this case and cc IB, KH and JL.
Google group website…..
SAAG standards and the performance reports shared with me last time
Time limits but do not address the quality of what the state is getting. Need legal people to review the files with a skeptical eye.
CarrollCounty and PutnamCounty
Carroll County SAAG will not join us on the call. CarrollCounty is not interested. Judge in CarrollCounty also will not join us. Meet with Vivian tell that Michael Flynn will not participate.
Putnam County SAAG has serious court order issues. One order says Mo.can not keep children safe because “she got herself raped by a stranger”. Give to Vivian and ask her to address…..
Placement Stability survey results
Michelle has sent a report. Susan shared the report with RD staff with the expectation for them to share with CD’s and frontline staff.
LegalAcademy classes coming up
Open Courts…. January Judge Tilley and Judge Hammond
Good Case Plans: Diligent Searches: Visitation and Overlapping work of the Courts and the Agency. March Judge Key
Robin Nash Lecture: Overmedication of Children
Follow up email Ashley received after the G mtg presentation
Email from Mary Franklin Barmore. Expressed concerns about the cold case project which Michelle feels the agency needs to address as opposed to her or Ashley W. addressing.
Diligent search continues to be missing and or incomplete. There is a great diligent search report in SHINES. Not being completed and when it is completed not being presented to the court. Reasonable efforts go hand and hand with the diligent search. Diligent search needs to be an ongoing effort not a point in time effort. Process oriented with a checklist that once checked off has fulfilled obligation to the case. How do you teach people to integrate and critically assess the information gathered?
Put OCA and CIP on the PEAS distribution list….Practitioner List
IV. Child Advocate Updates & ConcernsMelissa Carter
Review last report from OCA to look at the practice trends. Isabel will schedule a separate meeting to discuss with Melissa and Kathy. The agency would like to have an opportunity to discuss the findings and to find systemic ways to address the identified concerns.
V. DFCS ConcernsIsabel Blanco
Foster Parent Conference: Right to Be Heard
Michelle will be presenting at the first conference on Jekyll Island…..Judge Hammond will be presenting at all of the conferences.
Get with Bobby to find out what we are doing in regards to the conference….
CIP is sponsoring a legal track for the AFPAG.
VI. Progress on action plans from previous meeting
VII. Next Steps and Action Plans
Michelle Barclay will send Susan the Google group information for the cold case files.
Michelle will send Susan the Court order from PutnamCounty to follow-up with Vivian
Follow up on WadeCasePickensCounty…Michelle to send letter to Director, Isabel Blanco, Kathy Herren and Jeff Lukich.
Kathy and Susan to send a tip out regarding the Diligent Search for staff….
Susan to coordinate meeting with Linda Mitchell and Pre-meeting with participants
Kathy Herren to present at Summit on 01/21 in Ware
Isabel to present at Summit on 02/26 in Lowndes
Kathy to explore changing the policy surrounding adoption assistance once the child has come back into the agency custody.
Staff need to be prepared for the Open Courts ruling effective January 1, 2010 Kathy to prepare a statement. Michelle to send a copy of the information guide they used for Judges. Melissa Carter offered to help do bullet points for dissemination.
12-year-old child who is over medicated. Isabel has sent the email to Millicent Houston.