Gov. Nathan Deal and his wife Sandra addressed employees of the newly-overhauled state Division of Family and Children Services this morning, and our colleague Craig Schneider noted that the governor took a personal tone during his 10-minute address to staffers.
Deal told the workers he hoped the switch he announced yesterday would end up making their lives easier and let them know they are supported in their decisions, reinforcing the broader cultural change he's pushing in the department.
“We want you to have one thing as your primary focus and that is the welfare of children – their safety, their security and their lives,” said Deal in the 10-minute address.
The talk came after Deal replaced the department's previous director with Bobby Cagle, a trusted lieutenant whom Deal had tapped to head the Department of Early Care and Learning shortly after taking office.
In an interview yesterday, Deal said the agency would shift its focus more toward the protection of children, with less emphasis on keeping troubled families together.
Sandra Deal, who noted her daughter had worked for a child service group out of college, echoed her husband's emphasis that caseworkers should not be shy about making the decision to remove a child from a potentially dangerous home.
“If they can be safe in homes, then, of course, we want them in homes,” the first lady said. “But sometimes that is not possible because a parent is in difficulty themselves and cannot properly care of the child. If you sense a child is not safe, for whatever reason, then move on your feelings.”
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