Commissioner Hank Whitman Letter Regarding CPS Reforms

TExAs DEPARTMENT OF FArvifi Y AND PROTECTIVE SERVICES
CoMMIssIoNER
H. L. Whitman, Jr.
July 5, 2016
The Honorable Greg Abbott

Office of the Governor
P. 0. Box 12428
Austin, Texas 787 11-2428
Dear Governor Abbott:
It is a distinct honor and privilege to report to you on my first two months as Commissioner of
the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS). At our first meeting, you made it
abundantly clear that your focus and, therefore, my charge is to improve the Texas child
welfare system and Child Protective Services (CPS). There are positive efforts under way to
protect children, and I see an agency desperate to do great work.
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But more must be done, and quickly. Here is my 10-point plan for CPS:
1) The core mission of CPS is to do whatever it takes to protect Texas children from abuse and
neglect. That mission must be carried out without failure, and with a new culture of
accountability in the entire organization. CPS front-line caseworkers must have the training
and resources to respond quickly and do what is necessary to protect our children. Their
supervisors must ensure cases are handled correctly, and their managers must have complete
command of the children on their watch. When a child is injured or killed, we must dissect
that case and learn from it but also make employees accountable.
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2) The ten CPS regional directors must re-apply for their jobs. The CPS regional director must
be a top leader, administrator, teacher/trainer, and primary local representative with elected
officials, the judiciary, and stakeholders. The agencys performance will improve and Texas
children will be safer once we ensure the right people are in these key jobs and they are
held accountable for the performance within their regions.
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3) We lack adequate high-quality capacity in the foster care system, particularly for high-needs
children. Many children suffer from trauma and mental illness, emotionallbehavior health
problems, or are medically fragile from what they have experienced. Our system must be
strengthened to take special care of these children who through no fault of their own are now
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An Equal Opportunity Employer and Provider

July 5, 2016
Page 2
the states responsibility. We must engage all providers, judges, and community partners to
help, and we must lead the effort with creativity and innovation.
4) CPS Transformation, the overhaul launched in 2014, should continue because it improves the
ability of our caseworkers to succeed in protecting children, and frees workers to spend more
time with families. An example of this is the CPS Practice Model and Structured DecisionMaking. These tools give the worker the ability to assess a family situation and make the best
decision. And because survey after survey has shown caseworkers are frustrated by their
working conditions and work environment, we must continue to work hard through the
Transformation process to ensure that local managers treat employees with dignity and
respect.
5) CPS needs a sharper focus on the critical first few hours when a worker gets an assignment,
reviews it, and first visits a home. In partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety,
we will develop a team of information analysts to gather information about the household for
a caseworker. A CPS investigator responding to a new report will now have up-to-date
information about the criminal history of any household member; this will help the
investigator in the decision-making process. This program is being piloted now in
Williamson County.
6) The role of CPS Special Investigators (SI) is under review to ensure we take full advantage
of their law enforcement background and much-needed skiliset to improve CPS
investigations. Our investigators lack forensic training so I will ensure all 146 SIs get top
notch forensic training by September 1. They will then be given the specific assignment to
train all CPS investigative caseworkers in their regions.
7) We must bring Texas vibrant faith-based community we must bring God into the child
welfare tent. Frankly, we need the help. While there have been some faith-based efforts
under way at CPS, we must ramp up those efforts, particularly in the areas of prevention,
foster care, and adoption.
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8) The many thousands of children who are in state conservatorship deserve the highest quality
of care. To that end, I am ramping up the states investment in performance-based outcomes
for foster care. We must rejuvenate and aggressively expand our Foster Care Redesign
program. Results from our current contract are impressive: placements are more stable;
brothers and sisters are staying together; and the provider network is at an all-time high in
both quality and quantity. I will expand to the next catchment area while informing all
providers that the state must have performance-based contracting.
9) Texas children are at risk due to the cruel tenacity of human traffickers, and I can assure you
that battling this scourge will continue to be one of this agencys top priorities. CPS has a

July 5, 2016
Page 3
specialized intake protocol for trafficking reports, workers are trained to recognize the signs
of human trafficking, and trafficking victims receive special services. We will maintain our
sharp focus and continue to work with other organizations on this important issue.
10) The single best way to protect a young child from abuse or neglect is to provide young
parents with the tools and resources to build a safe, healthy household and avoid CPS
involvement. Prevention is key, and our Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) programs
must be expanded and strengthened. PEI programs are community-based and targeted to
families most at risk. These programs are taking hold in communities and we are working
hard to divert families from the child welfare system.
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The issues I am bringing to you today are challenging, and we have much work to do, but with
your support and that of the Texas Legislature we can begin to make CPS what it should be: the
protector of Texas children.
And while I have great respect for the DFPS workforce, the era of business as usual at this
agency has ended. Those who do not share our vision for children first no longer have a place
here. You have tasked me with an awesome job and I will work hard to deliver on your
expectations.
While this is a start, in the coming months I will be offering more specific details and progress
th
reports as we approach the kickoff of the 85
Legislature.
ncerely,
H. L. Whitman, Jr.

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TExAs DEPARTMENT OF FArvifi Y AND PROTECTIVE SERVICES

The Honorable Greg Abbott

701W. 51ST STREET+ P.O.

An Equal Opportunity Employer and Provider

The Honorable Greg Abbott

The Honorable Greg Abbott

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