Redesigning Child Welfare Agencies To Address The Concrete Needs Of Families
A few weeks ago, my client, a mother in a child protective case trying to regain custody of her children. informed my students she had lost her housing and was now homeless. Immediately, my students picked up the phone and called the one person tasked with helping our client get her kids back – the agency caseworker. When the caseworker didn’t pick up the phone, they sent her an email. Days passed without a response. About a week later, they finally received a short message with a list of other community agencies that might be able to assist with housing, which my students had discovered days prior through a simple Google search. The caseworker ended the email indicating that there was nothing else she could do to help with housing. Our client was on her own. Experts predict that due to the pandemic, up to 28 million Americans will lose their housing once federal protections end. Undoubtedly, many will be families with children. Families may become homeless or be forced to live in dil