Most Louisianans miss it, but the military understands the importance of child well-being. This evening as I read, “Retired military brass tell why 75 percent of Louisiana’s young people wouldn’t qualify for service” in The Advocate, I was reminded of a 102-year-old news article stored in my files. I found it. On February 9, 1916,…
An Open Letter to the Louisiana State Legislature Open Letter to Louisiana Legislature Regarding Children’s Services RE: Louisiana Legislative Audit, Access to Comprehensive and Appropriate Specialized Behavioral Health Services in Louisiana Friday, February 23, 2018 Dear Honorable Louisiana Senators and Representatives, The Louisiana Legislative Auditor released a performance audit on February 14, 2018, titled, Access…
Child welfare professionals were delighted in 2013 when the Congressional Budget Office reported the number of children in foster care had been on a 10-year decline. The CBO published a report about foster care, adoption and kinship care which looked at the past and predicted the future. Based on the past and hopeful about the…
By Rick Wheat, Chief Executive Officer Louisiana United Methodist Children and Family Services I woke up curious. This morning I called the two kennels in my town and I asked what they are paid to board dogs. One kennel charges $24 per night and the other charges $28 per night. The average kennel in my…
The Bipartisan Policy Center asks, “Is America Under-Investing in its Young Children?” The short answer is “Yes!” And in Louisiana, which holds the average rank among the states of 49th for child well being, the answer is an even louder, “YES!” Clearly, we under-invest in our young children – not because we do not have…
I got side-tracked on the Louisiana Board of Ethics website recently. The site is at: http://ethics.la.gov Each year I visit the Board of Ethics website and take an online course in Ethics. This time, though, I explored the site a bit and became intrigued by its robust campaign finance section. With just a few quick…
Good evening, Friends! I attended the 2nd National Building Bridges Initiative this week so I missed some of the daily child welfare news I follow. This morning, while catching up on what I missed, I was excited to see this headline in The Atlantic: “America’s Child-Poverty Rate Has Hit a Record Low“! “Yes!”, rang out…
It’s hard to believe it’s that time again, but we are so excited to be preparing for yet another year of showing the youth in our care how much they are loved through all of our upcoming Christmas activities! One of the many things youth on our Ruston campus look forward to each year is…
An organization called Together We Rise donated 22 duffle bags to our Methodist Foster Care program. Each duffle bag contained a teddy bear, blanket, toothbrush/toothpaste and coloring book with crayons. Together We Rise is an organization determined to change the way foster children experience the system. Oftentimes foster children have had to carry their belongings…
Have you ever read an old document and, as you settled into it, you found yourself confused about whether you are reading something from the past or the present? Perhaps you felt a reader’s deja vu and had the sense the old document in your hands could have been written this morning! I had the…
During recent weeks, The Des Moines Register has published articles and public comment related to a managed care practice I call “half-managed care”. “Half-managed care” happens when a managed care organization interrupts care. In our experience in Louisiana, half-managed care occurs whenever a managed care organization (MCO) refuses to continue authorizing intensive residential care before…
I love our state flag! The central image on our flag is a mother pelican pricking her breast to feed her young with her own blood. That is commitment! The image is symbolic of our state’s deep commitment to our citizens. Rather than showing a pelican in flight above the waves, our state flag is…
All of us have heard of the Hippocratic Oath new physicians take. We also know another Hippocratic phrase, “First, do no harm“, found in the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates’ work titled, Of the Epidemics. In response to large health care crises, Hippocrates instructed physicians: “First, do no harm“. Only a few politicians are also physicians,…
It’s almost Back to School time! We need YOUR help to ensure our children are ready for their first day and every day thereafter. Your donation will help our teachers and staff prepare for the new school year by purchasing much needed equipment, books, teaching supplements, and most importantly – SCHOOL SUPPLIES! Please click on…
At Louisiana United Methodist Children and Family Services, we strive to provide opportunities for our staff to learn and grow to be the best leaders they can be! Enter Leadership Schools, offered by our Staff Development Department. Each year, staff are invited to participate in a year-long Leadership class, with the potential to advance in…
