Scene at Aug. 6 DCFS Advisory Board meeting

The Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services Advisory Board (DCFS Board) was established by Ohio law as an advisory committee on children’s services. It can have up to 10 members who shall provide independent perspective and feedback to the county and DCFS leadership. Members are appointed for four years by the county executive, and appointments must be confirmed by Cuyahoga County Council. The DCFS Board also serves as a link between the division and the community it serves. The DCFS Board is advisory in nature only and does not have any decision-making authority over DCFS or the county. 

Advisory board meetings are held at the Cuyahoga County Administrative Headquarters on East 9th Street in downtown Cleveland. This meeting was held in Council Committee Room A, which was very cool today with air conditioning working well. There were only two of us seated in the public chairs, although 17 spots were available along two sides of the room. Later in the meeting, the other person joined the members’ table, which is arranged in a semicircle. Three large screens are on the walls, showing the meeting space and each of the members participating via Microsoft Teams.

The agenda was available on the website, and paper copies were on the front of the members’ table. 

Jacqueline Fletcher, the director of DCFS, participated in the meeting virtually via Microsoft Teams. Karin Austin, a deputy director with DCFS, attended in person. Current board members all attended the meeting — five in person and five through Teams. 

The meeting was called to order by Angela Newman-White, chair of the board. The members introduced themselves quickly, and it was not easy to understand what some of them were saying as they gave titles and workplaces along with their names. There were no nameplates in the room, and I couldn’t find a list of members, so the following information about board members was gained through past notes and internet searches. 

• Lakecia Wild – supervisor with Future Directions 
• Debra Rex – child advocate, former CEO at Beech Brook 
• Angela Newman-White – director at First Year Cleveland
• Dr. Andrew Garner – primary care pediatrician at University Hospitals, clinical professor at CWRU 
• Verna Darby – intake specialist at Birthing Beautiful Communities
• David Crampton – associate professor, Center on Poverty and Community Development at CWRU
• Beverly Charles – retiree, former staffer in U.S. House of Representatives
• M. Gabriella Celeste – policy director, Schubert Center for Child Studies at CWRU
• Daniel Smith – detective with Cleveland Division of Police
• Bianca Crawford – founder and CEO of Motivated and Empowered, Inc.

Public comment

No members of the public were present at the meeting. Darby said a member of the public had contacted her about a letter she had received saying that she has custody of her 17-year-old granddaughter. The person said she has “not laid eyes on” the girl in months as she is a runaway. The grandmother is wondering what her responsibility may be, especially since she does have custody of the 17-year-old’s siblings. Austin asked Darby to send her an email with details so that she may reach out directly. 

Meeting minutes

Approved from June 4, 2025. Paper copies were available on the front of the members’ table.

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The Centers’ H.O.P.E Campus updates

The sole guest at the meeting today was Dawnya Underwood, executive director of The Centers’ H.O.P.E Campus. The agenda listed her name and “Wellness Campus Update.” Both “hope” and “wellness campus” were used during the discussion that followed, and I later discovered that they are indeed the same project. Groundbreaking took place in April 2025 to convert the Cleveland Christian Home into a campus to address pressing needs, which the Centers describe as “reinforcing our commitment to supporting children who need stability, healing, and a path to a brighter future,” adding that “this initiative was made possible through collaboration with the Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services, Juvenile Court, Board of Developmental Disabilities, ADAMHS Board, and over 20 community partners.” 

An active discussion took place, with various board members asking questions, all of which were answered by Underwood. As it was difficult for me to identify members individually until doing some factfinding after the meeting, I will list key points that were shared by Underwood:

• Structure and design
  • Six units to be renovated/refurbished by Oct. 31
  • Aiming for capacity of over 50 beds
  • Waiting for permits for welcome center on campus, anticipate startup in November
  • Welcome center anticipated to open to children/families in fall 2026
  • All campus renovations affected by supply chain issues
  • Will have 18 emergency beds (called T-suites) to accommodate anticipated stays of 30 days or less
• Services being provided:
  • Anticipate intensive therapeutic stays to be three to six months, open residential stays for six to nine months
  • Welcomes more discussion with DCFS re: respite/short-term stays
  • Emergency beds currently limited to ambulatory children only (kids who can walk and move around) because there is no elevator access
  • Have served youth who are parents, but the facility is not set up to accept mothers with their babies 
  • Do not specifically seek out those with substance abuse but understand it is often co-occurring with other diagnoses or disorders
  • Anticipate welcome center being “front door” as Jane Edna Hunter building sunsets
• Safety considerations:
  • Hardware to make areas private
  • Ongoing camera monitoring outside of private spaces
  • Enhancing staff skills for de-escalation and crisis intervention
  • Selective grouping to avoid friction, clashes
  • Physical security to patrol perimeter 
  • Have security contractors, emergency preparedness plans
• Data on the existing T-Suites since 2023:
  • Girls’ intensive unit for three months, converted to prioritize emergency beds
  • 160 children served, 237 admissions, as some are returning clients
  • 83 male, 76 female, 1 non-binary
  • Youngest served was 8 years old, two 9-year-olds, three 10-year-olds
  • Average age is 14
  • 4,063 completed health and wellness appointments
  • 80 kids completed psychiatric appointments
  • 60% of children have three or more diagnoses
  • Most common diagnoses are PTSD, ADHD and disruptive mood disorder
  • 24/7 nursing staff, weekly nurse practitioner, and weekly psychiatrist who can make determination if referral to psychologist is also warranted
  • Follow-up services in place with various agencies
• Success story shared
  • Child arrived in February 2024 at age 11 after seven previous placements
  • Stayed 528 days
  • 210 counseling sessions (individual, group and with father)
  • 24 psychiatric sessions
  • Supervised visits with father at site
  • Child now living with father successfully

Fletcher thanked Underwood for the work The Centers is doing and said of the H.O.P.E Campus that “having a space where those kids can go … is central to our partnership.” She said DCFS continues to work to prioritize “building our kinship support teams.”

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Cuyahoga County DCFS updates

Fletcher gave the DCFS director’s report:

• Keeping eyes on potential Medicaid cuts
• Regional supports increasing from Ohio Department of Children and Youth (DCY); Underwood said that DCY teams have already come to H.O.P.E campus
• Fletcher said DCFS will keep child protection teams “on our radar” 
• Child Health Equity Center’s summit was held in Massachusetts and online on June 5 with 95+ attendees representing more than 60 organizations

Throughout this meeting, several board members mentioned the need for prevention efforts and how to support families before they reach crisis levels. Further discussion emphasized this need within the community.

Relevant points:

• Community must address current changes to decreased SNAP benefits, increased work requirements, realizing that such cuts will increase stress on families
• Comments from Celeste:
  • Asked if Karen Storman, newest DCFS deputy director, is a good point person for in-home support. Fletcher said yes.
• Garner – Families in Society journal research shows building a primary ecosystem is key. Is there a role the county can play to make it easier to overcome barriers rather than waiting for more serious issues that must be addressed?
• Fletcher – met father who said livable wage is what is most needed and stress from not being able to provide for family is what causes other issues; he did get connections and assistance, but the father’s concerns point to larger issue
• Rex – would like to advocate for better coordination between agencies

Updates from Subcommittee Chairs

Intervention Sub-Committee Update

Crampton was called upon for an update. He said he did not have a data dashboard to review but will have it for the October meeting

Governance Sub-Committee Update

Newman-White said that, according to the board’s bylaws, no member shall serve more than two consecutive four-year terms. Since eight of the current 10 members were appointed in 2019, they will be finished with their terms in 2027. She asked that consideration be given to new members and hopes for continuity in achieving goals with future board members.   

Prevention Sub-Committee Update

Celeste referenced the earlier discussions during this meeting, saying the meeting was “robust” and informative regarding prevention.

DCFS Advisory Board closing remarks

• Michael Bokmiller is the other person seated in the public chairs along with me. At this point, he came to the members’ table to say that he is with Canopy Child Advocacy Center. The organization will be having a full-day summit on identifying child abuse on Oct. 29. They are still working on location details. They are hoping for 300 attendees to include DCFS, law enforcement, medical providers from various hospital systems, trauma therapists, and any other professionals working with children. 
• Crawford said her agency (Motivated and Empowered, Inc.) will be able to help teen moms even more now. It is moving to Warrensville Heights on Aug. 15. This link provides more information about a new housing initiative. 
• Newman-White (First Year Cleveland) shared:
  • Event for fathers tomorrow.
  • Applications for mini-grants for organizations that support the immediate needs of pregnant and parenting families will be released tomorrow. Here is the current information from the website, which states applications are due Sept. 2.

The next board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 1 from 4 to 6 p.m. in Committee Room A at the Cuyahoga County Administration Headquarters. Fletcher said she will not be able to attend and that Kara Davis, deputy director with DCFS, will attend in her place. 

The meeting was adjourned by the chair at 5:38 p.m., and she expressed surprise that it ended early.

These notes are by Documenter Laurie Redmon.

If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@signalcleveland.org  with “Correction Request” in the subject line.