Agency to help Blair CYF

JusticeWorks YouthCare to assign two caseworkers to the county office

HOLLIDAYSBURG -- Blair County is signing a contract for extra help in its Children, Youth & Families office with an agency that has drawn favorable reviews in other Pennsylvania counties.

Commissioners Amy Webster and Laura Burke voted Thursday to approve a purchase of services agreement with JusticeWorks YouthCare, an organization founded in 1999 that's currently operating in six states including Pennsylvania.

Burke said the agency is expected to initially assign two caseworkers to work out of the county office and can provide as many as seven based on the agreement.

"I was encouraged that they were ready to supply two," Burke said

The cost will be shared by the state and the county, with the state expected to cover about 80% based on current reimbursements levels.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, staffing levels in the county CYF office began dropping significantly and they haven't recovered. The county continues to have difficulty finding qualified people to hire for CYF openings that developed after employees resigned for various reasons, including jobs with better pay and better hours.

In May 2022, the state Department of Human Services recognized that the county agency wasn't keeping with required procedures and issued a provisional operating license. The agency's fourth and current provisional license is valid through May 5. It was issued Nov. 4, followed by the state's assignment of an operational manager to the county agency.

Burke said Thursday that the county's CYF staffing levels have been improving in recent weeks with additional hires. It was also able to hire four qualified caseworkers to work part-time hours in temporary positions that were created last year to help the understaffed office.

"I believe things are heading in the right direction," the commissioner said.

JusticeWorks YouthCare, which has an office in Ebensburg and additional offices in Pennsylvania, offers online information indicating that its staff is working with agencies in 40 of the state's 67 counties.

The agency indicates that its personnel work with child welfare and juvenile justice agencies to cover gaps in delivery of services. To do that, the agency claims to embrace a "whatever it takes" passion to help youths and families by relying on evidence-based practices and research aimed at stabilizing living arrangements and preventing out-of-home placements.

In November, three Schuylkill County child welfare caseworkers praised JusticeWorks caseworker Amber Rossochacy, who they work with, for forming strong relationships with local families and Rossochacy's attention to detail.

That praise was posted online when Rossochacy was recognized as JusticeWorks' Employee of the Month

JusticeWorks also made an online posting in October of a letter that its President and CEO Dan Heit received from a Lebanon County child welfare caseworker. In that letter, the caseworker praised four JusticeWorks' employees for their assistance in working with local families.

Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 814-946-7456.