DCF Says It Is On The Right Track,

But Critics Disagree

By Sarah Coffey

Associated Press

MIDDLETOWN — The summertime quiet that echoes in the halls of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School gives no hint of the violence that erupted in May between inmates and staff.

Walking the cinderblock halls, Department of Children and Families Deputy Commissioner James Carr points to classrooms where children learn bike repair, cooking, and animal care as positive steps toward keeping residents occupied and learning new skills.

Mr Carr says the enhanced curriculum puts the school on the right track toward eliminating persistent problems at the DCF-run facility, which has become the most visible symbol of a troubled child welfare system.

“All of us desire progress here. We may be impatient, but these are complex issues and complex problems we are attending to,” Mr Carr said.

The $57 million juvenile training school came under fire almost immediately after it opened three years ago.

A report by the child advocate’s office in November 2002 complained that staff illegally restrained and secluded boys; no individualized treatment plans existed; the center was not adequately cleaned; and proper policy to respond to suicide attempts and other critical incidents had not been developed.

DCF disagreed with the report, calling some of it untrue and saying more time was needed to work on the other issues.

The May 16 and 17 melee at the training school, which injured 27 staff members, pushed DCF to begin overhauling the detention center. The department agreed to spend $1,000 a day to hire a federal monitor to consult with the school’s administration. DCF Commissioner Darlene Dunbar issued a September 1 deadline to improve conditions there.

The agency has promised to increase the presence of management staff and others who will walk through the facility more often. DCF also plans to fill staff security vacancies, and create a panel of experts in behavioral health and substance abuse to consult with management.

Ms Dunbar said she also wants to increase the number of educational and other programs offered at the center, to reduce the number of hours residents spend with little to do.

The training school is not accepting any new youths over the summer so it can focus on revamping its program, CJTS Superintendent John Dixon said.

Mr Dixon said a main goal is creating programs that bolster the morale of the staff, which plummeted following the violence.

“It’s hard to maintain morale when people are feeling unsafe,” he said. It’s been a pretty rough period of time in terms of kids acting out and staff getting hurt.”

The problems at the detention center come 14 years after the entire DCF was placed under federal oversight following a lawsuit claiming systemwide negligence. Critics doubt the agency will complete a laundry list of systemwide changes by a November 2006 deadline that would allow it to get out from federal overstep.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and Child Advocate Jeanne Milstein say DCF either refuses to fix its problems or cannot manage to implement change.

“It’s outrageous what’s going on there. It’s a crisis, chaotic situation,” Ms Milstein said. “If parents acted toward their own children the way DCF acts toward the children in their care, the children would be removed from their care.”

Last week, both Mr Blumenthal and Ms Milstein alleged staff at the detention center have mistreated children and released security videotapes to back up their allegations.

Both have railed against the agency for failing create individualize treatment plans, and for shipping children out of state.

Mr Blumenthal said DCF continues to suffer from lack of leadership and clear direction.

“We see very little, if any, progress. The problems seem to be systemic and deep seeded, relating to lack of leadership as much as resources,” he said. “The scarcity of leadership is demonstrated in lack of accountability, long-term planning, and basic management. If it has helped, the evidence isn’t visible yet.”

But at least one advocate sees light at the end of the tunnel.

Shelley Geballe of Connecticut Voices for Children, one of two attorneys to file the class-action lawsuit against DCF that led to the consent decree, said the $51 million added to DCF’s budget this fiscal year will help lower DCF worker caseloads and help speed up adoptions.

“We’re making progress in some areas. Will it be enough to meet these deadlines? In a way I don’t think that matters so much. What matters is whether the quality of care is improving steadily,” she said.