'Place Matters' matters to these state lawmakers
Two days after a state senator said Brenda Donald's signature child welfare program was “not working,” the Human Resources secretary received a warm reception — even applause — when she appeared before another group of lawmakers Thursday.
At a briefing for the joint committee on children, youth and families, Donald summarized why she believes “Place Matters,” which she launched two years ago, is improving outcomes for vulnerable children. Under this new approach, the department focuses on reunifying foster children with their own parents or keeping them in family settings, a shift that has reduced the state's reliance on group home beds by nearly half.
Donald said she is using evaluating the quality of group homes across Maryland and being selective about which ones will continue to receive state contracts — a radical departure from years past. The Baltimore Sun investigated the state's lax oversight of group homes in a 2005 series and numerous follow-up stories warehoused here.
“It is refreshing to us that you get it and are doing such a good job,” said Sen. Nancy J. King, a Montgomery County Democrat. King’s comment drew applause from the audience.
Donald’s last trip to Annapolis wasn’t so warm and fuzzy. Her Tuesday testimony to the Senate committee that oversees social services wasn’t a “pleasant experience,” as Sen. Joan Carter Conway noted after grilling her for more than an hour.
Conway, a Baltimore Democrat, said she doesn’t like the way group homes have been shunted under Place Matters. A room full of angry group home providers agreed.
“We don’t think the department knows what it needs,” said Jim McComb, longtime director of Maryland Association of Resources for Families and Youth, who recently stepped down.
On Thursday, Sen Bobby A. Zirkin, a Baltimore County Democrat who pushed for the kind of group home reform Donald is now undertaking, warned her she’d continue to be pummeled with complaints because providers are losing money and going out of business (38 have lost DHR contracts so far).
“You’re going to get a torrent of criticism by those who have a vested interest in what was a broken system,” Zirkin said.
Donald responded to one of the criticisms leveled Tuesday — that she had no proof that children are not bouncing around from placement to placement under the new strategy — by releasing statistics Wednesday to The Baltimore Sun’s editorial board. You can read the editorial here.
Comments
They say they won't place a child in a group home unless they are at least 13. My child has been in a group home since he was 8. I love my child but no offense but my child could kill somebody. He is not a child who can live in the community. This summer while visiting he nearly drowned his sister. He thought it was funny. He broke his teacher's arm in school. He doesn't think he should be punished for it. In his words. " Well she got her arm back." My child suffers from both bipolar disorder with psychotic features and Schizophrenia. Although they don't like to diagnose children with these disorders, however I know he has them because his mother and father both suffer from these illness. On his mother's side it goes back three generations. They have already closed several units where my child is housed. If they close down his unit there is no way I can accept them in my home. He attacks me. When he visits I have to have my older son, his brother with me to help protect us. He always says to me. " You can't beat me you old lady." If they close his unit then we won't get to see him. I love him and I want him to know that he is loved and has a family. But we have to live with some restraints because he will hurt somebody. If you place my child in a home with somebody he will hurt some unsuspecting foster parent who only wnats to do good, where I have learned to accept the things I cannot change and love him with the restraints that will keep him and us safe.
*** Thanks for sharing your story. Brenda Donald said that family settings are the new norm for children under 13 except in some circumstances, when the child has special needs that can only be met in a more formal setting. It sounds like your son might fit that category. ***JB
Posted by: Gidorah | October 5, 2009 9:50 AM