Texas was right to end its contract with Empower, the contractor overseeing foster care services in Dallas and surrounding counties, but changing providers is only the first step toward protecting children the system has continually failed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now Texas must ensure that the children whose cases are moving to new providers don\u2019t fall through the cracks.<\/p>\n
While private contractors carry the burden of overseeing foster care children\u2019s cases under the community-based care model, the state still needs to invest in rigorous training and provide competitive pay for caseworkers to ensure these contractors can be successful.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In court hearings observed by The Lab Report, Empower caseworkers repeatedly appeared before the judge unprepared and unequipped with basic information about the children they were responsible for, including one instance where a caseworker didn\u2019t know if a child was enrolled in Medicaid and another where the caseworker didn\u2019t have a clear answer for the judge when asked if the child had been prescribed psychotropic medication.\u00a0<\/p>\n
These are not minor paperwork errors. Information about a child\u2019s medical coverage and medical history is fundamental to case management. Judges cannot make informed decisions when the professionals responsible for these children arrive unprepared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kathleen LaValle, president and CEO of Dallas CASA, a program for volunteers who advocate for children in court, said the March 2024 transition of case management from CPS to Empower was \u201cextremely difficult.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
From the beginning, Empower wasn\u2019t set up for success. They thought they would have an influx of experienced state employees looking to join their staff, but that didn\u2019t happen. Instead, they were unable to fill positions, driving up caseloads for the workers they did have. And when they did recruit more employees, many didn\u2019t have experience working in child welfare and were unprepared for the difficult nature of the cases they would be dealing with.<\/p>\n
LaValle told us that meant Dallas CASA had to fill the gap, taking on some of the casework responsibilities that weren\u2019t being met instead of the advocacy work generally expected of volunteers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dallas is fortunate to have a strong CASA program with volunteers willing to give their time, but not every part of Texas has enough volunteers to provide that additional layer of advocacy. And even the strongest advocacy networks can\u2019t substitute for established, qualified case-management workers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now the more than 2,000 cases that Empower oversees will transition to two new providers currently serving children in other parts of the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Texas must make sure these children are not failed again. Changing contractors will mean little unless caseworkers have the necessary training and reporting to ensure the children under their care are being looked after.\u00a0<\/p>\n