In recent news, the State Department of Human Services was slapped with a lawsuit amid allegations the agency doesn't do enough to protect kids in the foster care system. Now, DHS is working to iron out those wrinkles.
The Tulsa County Child Welfare Office opened its doors Tuesday to community leaders and DHS staffers for an open house celebration of four newly renovated family visitation rooms. The rooms, which are already in use, are used to facilitate visits for families whose children have been removed from them and taken into protective custody, to help them deal with abuse and neglect.
The $15,000 project was sponsored by the Tulsa Advocates for the Protection of Children and George Kaiser Family Foundation. The rooms include new furniture, floors, and children's toys.
Noema Inman, a foster mom, told Fox 23 she doesn't need a room to solve a problem, she just wants to gain custody of her 3-year old great grandson. She's been involved in a legal battle with DHS since the child was born.
The child was taken from his mother and given to Noema, and later taken from her because a DHS social worker didn't feel Noema was able to protect the child from his now 18-year old mother.
"He was in 6 homes and 3 daycares from August to September," Inman said. "It's certainly not in the best interest of a child to take them from the home where they know the family," Inman said.
"We continue to do what we've always tried to do which is assess the safety of the children whether they're in our custody before or while they're in our custody," Robison said.
