CLEVELAND COUNTY RESPONDS TO WBTV NEWS STORY
This press release is in response to a WBTV news story which aired on Monday, March 7, 2022. NCDHHS, in an email dated March 8, 2022 has responded to WBTV to correct information shared as part of that story. Cleveland County would also like to correct misinformation shared. On February 25th, Cleveland County promptly responded to an inquiry made by WBTV Chief Investigative Reporter Nick Oschsner in which he asked about the use of Temporary
Guardianship forms, concerns about competency and capacity of child welfare staff; issues handling reports, and concerns about issues surrounding appropriate safety responses of staff.
Cleveland County informed WBTV, as part of that response, that Cleveland County DSS had, in the past, used temporary guardianship forms in child protective services cases. The use of these forms was brought to the attention of Cleveland County DSS Director Katie Swanson in July, 2021. After learning of their existence, Ms. Swanson immediately stopped all DSS’ use of these forms and contacted the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), the state supervising authority. After contacting NCDHHS, DSS staff promptly informed the eleven families affected. It is important for the public to know that, at no time, were any of the children involved in danger.
North Carolina General Statute 7B, commonly referred to as the Juvenile Code, is the governing statute used by Social Services agencies. Upon investigation or assessment, when children are deemed to be unsafe in their home by the Department, it is a best practice to temporarily place them with family members with the parent's consent until the safety issues can be resolved. All of the placements made using the Temporary Guardianship form had been made with parents’ consent. Although Cleveland County DSS understands the use of this form is not a best practice and a different process should have been followed, it is important for the public to know there was no violation of law. It is also import for the public to understand, there are certain forms related to protective services that are approved and appropriate which differ from the Temporary Guardianship form.
The discovery of use of this form, in turn, led to Cleveland County DSS working proactively with NCDHHS on a Child Welfare Services Corrective Action Plan (CAP). During this process, Ms. Swanson alerted NCDHHS of other areas where improvement was needed.
“I take seriously our duty to protect the children of Cleveland County. That means, when we identify errors, we report them to our supervising authority (NCDHHS) and work towards a solution”, said Cleveland County DSS Director Katie Swanson. “This is exactly what Cleveland County DSS has done and we are stronger today for standing up for what is right, looking at what needed to be changed, and taking the appropriate action to fix any concerns related to policy and practices.”
Every day, Cleveland County DSS receives reports from those in the community who suspect abuse or neglect of children. Cleveland County Social Services is committed to ensuring NCDHHS policy is being followed. Trust of the community and the families served by DSS is vital to the success of the agency. After months of hard work by staff at Cleveland County DSS, Cleveland County’s corrective action plan was lifted on Friday, March 4th.
“The work we do is difficult. We have a dedicated, strong team working hard to assure children of Cleveland County are protected,” said Ms. Swanson “even when mistakes are made, Cleveland County Department of Social Services (DSS) is committed to transparency, accountability and always doing the right thing.”
DSS Director Statement