A recent state investigation found that the Alaska Office of Children’s Services failed to offer enough support for a foster child with aggressive behaviors. It originated from a 2022 complaint from a foster parent.
The report from the state Ombudsman’s office found in part that OCS did not follow policy when making a placement decision for the child, did not fully explain the child’s behaviors to a foster parent, and mishandled Protective Services reports about child maltreatment. It also found OCS did not fully provide appropriate mental health interventions for a child with complex needs.
A spokesperson for OCS said in an email that the office is committed to addressing recommendations from the ombudsman, Kate Burkhart.
Burkhart said her job is to evaluate the way state departments do their jobs from an objective, third-party perspective.
“We give people who don’t have a voice, a voice,” Burkhart said. “So, often in child protection cases, when foster parents feel like they have been treated unfairly by the agency, they don’t have a lot of recourse.”
The report responded to six allegations from the foster parent and offered recommendations. One complaint — that OCS unfairly investigated the foster parent — was not supported by the evidence. But the other complaints were supported by evidence found in its investigation. The ombudsman worked with the Office of Children’s Services to discuss the findings and propose possible recommendations.
“In this case, OCS and the Department of Family and Community Services and the Department of Health all participated in that process to help ensure that our recommendations made the most sense,” Burkhart said. “And really led to improved — we hope — improved, services for foster youth that have complex disabilities and needs”
Burkhart’s office publicly released five recommendations related to the case. OCS accepted most of them. It partially rejected the recommendation that OCS develop policy and procedures to address the issue of child-on-child sexual abuse between children in its system. The office made the same suggestions after a similar case in 2017.
The agency said it is unable to create a standard definition of of child-on-child sexual abuse because it’s unable to investigate a child as a perpetrator. Burkhart says the ombudsman doesn’t have the power to enforce these recommendations if agencies choose not to follow them.
OCS accepted a recommendation to create and file “foster parent agreements” that address a child’s known behavior with foster parent placements and another to strengthen relationships with other state agencies and programs.