UPDATED: A 38-year-old Arlington woman was executed Wednesday for the starvation death of her girlfriend’s son. Lisa Ann Coleman is the sixth woman to be executed in the state since 1982.
Child Protective Services
Posted in
Higher Education
Slideshow: Foster Care Alumni Who Made It to College
Former foster youth who have successfully enrolled in college share their experiences and thoughts about the challenges of transitioning to higher education.
Posted in
Higher Education
Few Foster Care Alumni Use Higher Ed Benefits
Though the state offers free tuition and fees for certain former foster youth who enroll at public colleges and universities, relatively few take advantage of the opportunity — a trend policymakers are hoping to change.
Posted in
Health care
After Years of Reform, Lawsuit Rattles an Agency Still Facing Challenges
Like most child welfare agencies nationwide, Texas Child Protective Services has had its share of problems. Officials say reforms have made clear improvements, but the agency still faces problems.
Posted in
Health care
El Paso Lacking English-Speaking Foster Homes
On the heels of an expansion of Fort Bliss, El Paso is seeing an increase in the number of children who can’t be placed in foster homes because there aren’t enough English-speaking homes available.
Posted in
Health care
Department Hopes Data Effort Will Help Reduce Child Deaths
The Department of Family and Protective Services has ramped up its efforts to conduct predictive data analysis and reduce the high turnover of CPS caseworkers, the agency’s commissioner told a panel of senators on Thursday.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Congressional Hearing Targets Foster Care
Failures in the foster care system put children in Texas and across the nation at greater risk of falling into the sex trade, activists and lawmakers asserted Wednesday on Capitol Hill.
Posted inState Government
Program Hopes to Raise Quality of Foster Care in Texas
Texas’ child welfare agency has launched a new program aimed at improving foster care in the state. Now in effect in 60 counties, the program attempts to keep children close to their communities and reduce the number of times they move between homes.
Posted in
Health care
Accountability Concerns Raised at Foster Care System Hearing
The Department of Family and Protective Services is moving forward on redesigning its foster care system, which will outsource services to private contractors. At a hearing Monday, some raised concerns about accountability.
Posted in
Health care
Updated: Lawsuit Can’t Cover All Kids in Long-Term Foster Care
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the national child advocacy group Children’s Rights cannot file its class-action suit on behalf of all 12,000 youth in Texas’ long-term foster care system.