Policy & Practice articles from June 2004

Policy & Practice archives from June 2004

Reflections on 75 years.
June 1, 2004... 75 Years of Excellence in Public Human Services March 20-23, 2005 Omni Shoreham Hotel Washington, DC 1945-1960 The American Public Welfare Association (APWA) began to emerge in a role that it maintains today--chief...

The amazing journey of Glenn Young.(Director's Memo)
June 1, 2004... Emerson once wrote that "nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." These words came to mind recently when I learned that Glenn Young was leaving federal service. Glenn's official title was Learning Disabilities Specialist in the...

Inside story.(Editorial)
June 1, 2004... In mid-April Sybil Walker Barnes, the editor of Policy & Practice, left APHSA after six years to take a wonderful new job at the American Institute of Architects. All of us at APHSA wish her the very best and extend our great appreciation for...

National data on Child Abuse and Neglect.(First Things First)
June 1, 2004... An estimated 896,000 children across the country were victims of abuse or neglect in 2002, according to national data released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in April 2004. The statistics indicate that about 12.3 out...

TANF extension adds pressure to states.(First Things First)
June 1, 2004... In contrast with prior TANF extensions, H.R. 3848, filed earlier this year, does not seek to maintain current law until reauthorization is resolved. Instead, while maintaining flat TANF and mandatory child care funding, the bill would require a...

HHS cites progress on homelessness.(First Things First)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi succeeded HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson as chair of the Interagency Council on Homelessness. The council coordinates the activities of 20 federal agencies that are involved in addressing homelessness...

Sibling placement.(First Things First)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Barriers within the child welfare system sometimes keep siblings apart when they enter the system. However, the authors of "Siblings and Out-of-Home Placement: Best Practices" suggest barriers can be identified and minimized. The article, which...

Web-based guide for children and youth programs.(First Things First)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Child Trends has gathered its extensive knowledge of children's programs into a dynamic "Guide to Effective Programs for Children and Youth." The web-based chart provides information about what works for a particular age group and desired...

Staff spotlight.
June 1, 2004... Name... Charisse Mitchell Time at APHSA... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Four years Title... Chief Operating Officer Place of Birth... Terre Haute, Indiana A typical day starts with... A cup of...

Reflections on the Food Stamp Program.(Cover Story)
June 1, 2004... While the volatile nature of the Food Stamp Program (FSP) allows almost any year to be claimed an anniversary year of some sort, 2004 is at least a triple-header. It marks the fortieth anniversary of the law that made the pilot programs of the...

2004 APHSA Spring Meeting.
June 1, 2004... House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (shown here, center) presented the keynote address at this year's luncheon. He discussed reforms needed to keep the 40-year-old Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children up to date with today's foster care...

Leadership: an open letter to human service leaders.
June 1, 2004... At an orientation session in March 2003, I delivered some after-dinner remarks to a group of newly appointed state human service executives. After a great deal of thought, I decided to use a letter I had written to a friend who had been the...

A spirit of collaboration: a conversation with Marc Cherna.
June 1, 2004... In the seven years since its creation, the Allegheny County Department of Human Services in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has benefited enormously from the spirit of collaboration and the generosity of Allegheny County's business, educational, and...

Getting informed consent--more than just a signature.(Legal Notes)
June 1, 2004... A 72-year-old woman developed gangrene in her feet after prolonged exposure to cold weather. With no relatives or friends to consult, she refused medical advice to have her feet amputated, a life-saving operation. Eventually, social workers for...

Frederick P. Cerise.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... In January, Dr. Frederick P. Cerise took the post of secretary at the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, replacing David Hood. For the last 13 years, Dr. Cerise had been chief executive officer of the Earl K. Long Medical Center.

Wallace Conerly.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Dr. Wallace Conerly succeeds Rica Lewis-Payton as executive director of Mississippi's Division of Medicaid. Prior to this position, Conerly was vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the medical school at the University of Mississippi...

Norman V. Lourie.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Norman V. Lourie, one of APHSA's early leaders, died in July 2003. A memorial service was held in March. Lourie was active in social work since 1928, running settlement houses during the 1930s, and serving as Pennsylvania's deputy secretary of...

Viola P. Miller.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Viola P. Miller was appointed commissioner of Tennessee's Department of Children's Services. She is the former secretary of Families and Children for Kentucky. Miller's work in Kentucky earned her a national reputation as an innovative,...

Paul Offner.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Paul Offner, former D.C. Medicaid director, died of cancer on April 20. He held several positions in public service, among them as deputy director of the Ohio Department of Health and, early in his career, as a Wisconsin state legislator. In...

Don Perry.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Don Perry, director of the National Resource Center for Information Technology in Child Welfare at the Child Welfare League of America, and a former SACWIS program manager in Arizona, died on April 28, of a heart attack. Perry was instrumental...

Sandra Shewry.(Newsmakers)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Sandra Shewry was appointed director of the California Department of Health Services, a position previously held by Diana Bonta. Most recently, Shewry was associated with the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and served...

Donald R. Taylor.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Donald R. Taylor has taken the position of executive director of Mississippi's Department of Human Services. Serving as executive director is not a new role for Taylor. He also served as executive director of the department under former Gov....

Texas has undergone a wide-reaching transformation of its health and human service system.(Newsmakers)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Texas has undergone a wide-reaching transformation of its health and human service system. As a result, 12 agencies have blended to create four departments under the direction of the Health and Human Services Commission. Commissioner Albert...

Marianne Udow.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... Marianne Udow, former senior vice president of Health Care Products and Provider Services for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, succeeds Nannette Bowler (who accepted a judicial appointment) as director of Michigan's Family Independence...

Page B. Walley.(Newsmakers)
June 1, 2004... In January, Dr. Page B. Walley became commissioner of Alabama's Department of Human Resources. He had served as commissioner of the state's Department of Children's Affairs since March 2003. Prior to coming to Alabama, Walley was commissioner...

Our do'ers profile.
June 1, 2004... In Our Do'ers Profile, we highlight some of the hard-working and talented individuals in public human services. This issue features David Parrella, Connecticut's Medicaid director and outgoing chair of the National Association of State Medicaid...

Say what?
June 1, 2004... The careful use of words is supposed to bring clarity and precision to communication. But sometimes we are faced with a word that will always mean different things to different people. One such word is "appropriate." This is especially true in...