A quick rundown of Ohio child protection news this week
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Weekly Update for November 13, 2018
Association Updates
 
Board of Trustees meets
The PCSAO Board of Trustees met Nov. 7 and approved October meeting minutes and treasurer’s report. The board approved the slate of officers for 2019. Kathi Spirk, Clinton County JFS, will be President; Cyndi Scanland, Allen County CSB, will be Vice President; Julie Barnes, Summit County CSB, will be Secretary; and Danny Brenneman, Coshocton County JFS, will be Treasurer. The board reviewed and approved PCSAO’s 2019 budget, discussed agenda items for the upcoming Executive Membership meeting, and received the final 2018 conference report. The board reviewed the Kinship Action Planning Group’s draft report and received priority, policy, and legislative updates. The trustees will meet next on Nov. 29 for the annual meeting.

Children services levies receive voter support on Election Day
Hocking and Jackson county voters passed their first-ever children services levies in last week's election, bringing the total number of Ohio counties with dedicated property taxes for child protection to 51. Of the 17 counties with children services levies on the ballot, 14 passed, with Marion County’s levy likely passing but still too close to call. Read more .

PCSAO Factbook advertisement opportunities
PCSAO’s next Factbook is in progress! Published every two years, the Factbook will once again make advertising space available in the Community Resources Section. The 2019 Factbook (14th edition) is due to be released in March 2019. The Factbook is a premier resource for statewide and county-specific child protection data and information. This resource is used and referenced extensively by child protection administrators and professionals, elected officials, policymakers, media, health & human service advocates and others at the local, state and federal levels. PCSAO is inviting you to be a part of the Factbook as an advertiser. Information about your organization can reach thousands at the local, state and federal levels. Advertisement space is limited, so reserve a space for your advertisement today !
 
We want to thank  Buckeye Health Plan SEQUEL-Pomegranate Health Systems St. Joseph Orphanage , and   Belmont Pines Hospital for supporting PCSAO as Factbook advertisers.

Children and Family Futures visits Ohio START counties
National training and TA partners Children and Family Futures visited Cohort 1 Ohio START counties Oct. 31-Nov. 1. CFF presented on best practices and provided guidance for ongoing implementation. The PCSAs and their partners participated in group discussions and received technical support and completed local action plans. Attendees ranged from PCSA administrators and directors to caseworkers and family peer mentors; all gained valuable knowledge to continue striving toward fidelity.

Rules updates
As of Nov. 9, no children services rules are in pre-clearance. 

Rules in Clearance: Review and comment here .

A rules package, State Hearings Manual Transmittal Letter, is in clearance until Nov 17, as a result of the five-year review. This package contains revisions to 16 rules in 5101:6. While public assistance benefits are the main focus of these rules, they also apply to social services, which includes Title XX services provided pursuant to Chapter 5101:2-29 of the OAC. 

Rules that have been filed: The following rules were filed on Nov. 7; the public hearing is scheduled for Dec. 11.
  • 5101:2-42-19: Requirements for the provision of independent living services to youth in custody
  • 5101:2-42-19.2: Requirements for provision of independent living services to young adults who have emancipated
The following rules were final-filed on Nov. 7 and will be effective as of Nov. 17:     
Announcements and Resources

Ohio General Assembly election results
House Democrats picked up five seats in last Tuesday’s election and lost one, narrowing the 66-member Republican majority in the Ohio House to 62 seats. All incumbents in the House won re-election. Senate Republicans picked up one seat in the upper chamber and are awaiting final results in a close Franklin County race where counting of provisional and absentee ballots continues.  The House is expected to vote on Speaker for the 133rd General Assembly in November. 

Registration opens for fourth annual Family Finding Convening 2018
The fourth annual Family Finding Convening registration is now open. The Family Finding Convening is an interactive learning and engagement opportunity for administrative- and management-level representatives working with families and children who experience the child welfare system. The day will focus on learning from existing models and holding strategic conversations to advance the practice of authentic, family-centered engagement in Ohio. CLEs will be available for attorneys. Mark your calendar for Dec. 4 at Mid-Ohio Food Bank. Click here for more information and registration.

Robert J. O’Leary Memorial Lecture
The Ohio State University College of Social Work and Office of Diversity and Inclusion presents the 2018 Robert J O’Leary Lecture featuring Dr. Ibram Kendi as the keynote speaker. Dr. Kendi is a professor of history and international relations and the founding director of the Anti-racist Research and Policy Center at American University. He is also an award-winning historian, New York Times best-selling author and Ideas Columnist at The Atlantic. Kendi’s second book, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, won the 2016 National Book Award for Nonfiction.

The lecture will be hosted Nov. 15 at The Ohio State University’s Fawcett Center Auditorium. There will be an Invitational student Q&A 4-4:45 p.m. and open lecture 5-6 p.m. Click here for more information and a free parking pass .
Child Protection in the News

Until now, once foster parents adopted children they cared for, they faced an end to services that helped them deal with troubles that come with children who are transitioning from one family to another. But Hope's Closet, one of southwest Ohio's largest foster-care non-profits, has started a new program to provide such help.

If we pass Issue 9, the Hamilton County Children's Services Levy will be increased for the first time. This will enable front line social workers at Job & Family Services (JFS) to better meet the needs of thousands of abused and neglected children in our community.
 
Richland County Children Services (RCCS) believes each child deserves a permanent and safe home. Adoption can provide that permanent family in some cases. The agency recruits, screens, trains and supports prospective adoptive parents while matching them with a child in need of a safe, nurturing and permanent home. In 2017, the local placement and adoption services team placed a total of 104 children in foster care or institutional care, relative placement and agency permanent custody.

Miami University is partnering with the Butler County Mental Health and Addiction Recovery Services Board (BCMHARS) to research the opioid crisis in southwest Ohio. Butler County, along with Hamilton and Warren counties, has been named a recipient of grant money from the Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act (CARA). The legislation was signed into law in 2016, and the U.S. Department of Justice awarded the three southwest Ohio counties a collective $2.1 million in October.

A Montgomery County court is handing down a message of hope. Families graduating from Family Treatment Court are officially starting a new beginning. Each road to recovery is different, but the one thing these graduates have in common is getting their children back.

The Center is a nationally accredited Child Advocacy Center. They provide a child-friendly centralized location to interview and offer medical evaluations to children, birth to 18 years of age, who are victims of abuse. Children up to the age of 18 can come to the Center for a forensic interview. Forensic interviews are legally sound, neutral, and focused on fact-finding. Medical Examination and Referrals for Mental Health are also available.
 
The opioid epidemic continues to burden foster care and children services throughout Ohio, prompting a near-record number of levies on the ballot. "We have about three to four thousand more children in custody on any given day in Ohio this year than we did just five years ago," said Scott Britton of The Public Children Services Association of Ohio.
Upcoming Events

Nov. 16 | Permanency Roundtables Advisory Council
Nov. 19 | Legislative Committee Meeting
Nov. 29 | Executive Membership Meeting

Employment Opportunities

Looking for a career in child protection? Or a new position to challenge yourself? Check out the latest job openings in child protection.

UPP graduates seeking employment at a PCSA are listed on our website.
Quote of the Week

“Be brave enough to live life creatively. The creative place where no one else has ever been.”
– Alan Alda
Public Children Services Association of Ohio | 614-224-5802 | www.pcsao.org
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