As described earlier, Minnesota needs more staff to manage growing caseloads including caseworkers, guardians ad litem, and Public Defenders.
But stakeholders say we shouldn’t just fully fund the system as-is. We should also provide supports that keep families from needing child protection help, or shorten their stays. This would simultaneously reduce child maltreatment and costs.
In addition to Early Learning scholarships and home visiting programs, we support increases in the Parent Support Outreach Program (PSOP) and Family Group Decision Making (FGDM).
PSOP helps parents who are getting close to a child protection intervention with practical stress-reducing help, including housing and transportation. FGDM harnesses families’ support networks to manage crises and keep parents on track.
Let’s use the drive to fund child welfare adequately to also strengthen families and lower costs.