Child welfare services could be more effective — and less expensive — if they were more proactive than reactive, an Oklahoma House of Representatives subcommittee was told Tuesday.
“Sixty percent of child protective services responses nationally are for neglect only, … but our interventions have been predominantly focused on addressing … physical abuse,” said Claire Anderson, a senior policy advisor with the Chapin Hall child welfare research center at the University of Chicago.
The result, she said, tends to be interventions after neglect becomes abuse, and more in the vein of criminal investigations when they should be more assessment-oriented.
“We spend about $33 billion annually, across state, federal and local dollars, by child welfare agencies,” Anderson said. “Only about 15% of those dollars are spent for preventative services.”
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Analysts know the factors associated with neglect and abuse, Anderson said, and many of those can be mitigated through various forms of government and private assistance.
The big one, she said, is child care.
“Difficulty of finding child care is a stronger predictor of maternal neglect than almost any other factor, including mental health and severity of drug use,” Anderson said.
A Tulsa woman identified only as Darcy told the panel the difficulty encountered when she and her spouse unexpectedly became the temporary guardians of a nephew in need of therapy.
“We went through two and a half pages of a list of day care that either didn’t have availability or did not want to take a child that had a situation,” she said.
“We have the financial means to look elsewhere, and we have had to do that. … We’ve had to hire someone privately to pick him up from school — which we can do, but my point being that I can’t imagine families in that situation who don’t have the means to do that.”
Other forms of assistance effective in combating child neglect and abuse, witnesses said, include health care for both parents and children, housing, and food programs such as SNAP and WIC.
Gabrielle Jacobi with Kids Count, an initiative of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said its annual report ranks Oklahoma 42nd nationally in overall child well-being, 45th in education, 42nd in health, and 41st in family and community strength and stability.
The “bright spot” is a No. 33 ranking for economic well-being.
Although authorized state agency spending for fiscal year 2022, which began July 1, is a record $8.83 billion in nominal dollars, Jacobi said actual purchasing power is 22% less when adjusted for inflation and population.
Anderson and Laura Potter, co-founder of ACE Interface, a national consultant on adverse childhood experiences, said numerous correlations between life circumstances and high ACE scores and child neglect have been identified.
In Washington state, where Potter lives and works, areas with the highest ACE scores are also areas with the highest unemployment and the least access to health care.
“I could have made these (connections) with a lot of things, including crime and justice. There’s health data. School data. ACE data reliably predict where we have failing schools (in Washington), and on and on and on,” said Potter, speaking via video conference call.
Potter said her goal has been to find ways for states to provide more effective services at lower cost to taxpayers, but she said that requires patience. Recommended initiatives can take five or even 10 years to produce measurable results, she said.
In Washington, Potter said, annual budgets for ACE-related programs ran about $4 million but eventually produced returns of 37-to-1.
But, Potter said, alarm bells are ringing.
“The ACE score in the youngest adults is much higher,” she said. “In (Washington), 63% of young adults age 18-34 have an ACE score of 3 or more. Among the next-older group, 35-54, only 35% have a score of 3 or more.”
Potter noted that the 18-34 age group is the most likely to be raising young children of their own.
“This dramatic increase in ACE prevalence among the youngest adults puts the next generation of children at risk,” she said.
From a budgeting standpoint, Potter said, “Each time we see the ACE prevalence in a population increase, it is essentially a future claim against the budgets of the state.”
Breaking the Cycle: The Tulsa World's 8-day series on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
Oklahoma ranks high for several social ills that have been linked to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) scores. A few examples:
No. 1 in female incarceration rates
No. 1 in the nation in incarceration rates when other factors such as the juvenile and jail populations are included, according to a 2018 study by the nonprofit organization Prison Policy Initiative.
No. 1 in heart-disease mortality
No. 2 in male incarceration rates
No. 3 in divorce with 13.1% of the state population reporting at least one marriage as ending in that manner, according to U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey statistics for 2013-17.
No. 5 in cancer deaths per capita, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
No. 5 in teen smoking with an estimated 12.5% of teens, according to CDC data.
No. 9 per capita in substantiated child abuse cases, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
What is your ACE score and what does it mean? Understanding the consequences of childhood trauma
Adverse Childhood Experiences — ACEs — are linked to a wide range of physical and psychological problems, from obesity and drug addiction to cancer rates and domestic violence.
Your ACE score starts with a simple test listing 10 of the most common adverse childhood experiences. A single point is scored for each one a person has suffered. Even a score of 2 or 3 can increase a person's risk of facing a lifetime of issues. Take the test.
Part 1: The science is well established and should come as no surprise
Children who suffer rough childhoods have a greater likelihood of being adversely affected later in life. By Curtis Killman
'I've been there. I know.' Oklahoma's children top the nation in trauma suffered, and one survivor is doing his part to stop it
Theron Ogedengbe was 9 years old when he entered the foster care system. After aging out, he found Youth Services of Tulsa. Now 27, “I’m going to be the kind of therapist I wish I had had,” he says. By Michael Overall
Part 2: Soda, cigarettes and trauma: How Adverse Childhood Experiences alter brain chemistry, cultivate unhealthy habits and prompt premature death
Oklahoma is No. 1 in the nation in youth up to age 17 who have experienced two or more ACEs. And Tulsa is at the forefront of revolutionary research to unlock a deeper knowledge of how social, behavioral, physical and environmental factors may affect brain development and health. By Corey Jones
An adult to trust. Tulsa grief therapist Jessica Orvis turns child counseling into art form
Jessica Orvis is telling you about her work with children, her efforts to blunt their trauma, when you notice her tattoos. Is she making a statement? By Guerin Emig
Part 3: 'All I ever knew.' Drugs. Alcohol. Jail. Oklahoma's children repeat the patterns of their parents
Tara Peterson never knew a life other than one filled with drugs and alcohol. Her parents abused them. She did too. With a jail sentence looming, and her own daughter growing up the same way she did, the cycle seemed destined to repeat itself. Then came Women in Recovery. By Michael Overall
She was always there. A court-appointed child advocate forms 20-year bond with two sisters
Maura Guten didn’t encounter much adversity growing up, but others in her life did. Her parents were impoverished in Ireland. Her University of Tulsa roommate experienced abuse and neglect as a child. By Guerin Emig
Part 4: For many trauma survivors, the key is breaking down what happened to them. That’s what therapy and mental health programs like the Mental Health Association of Tulsa’s Walker Hall can do
As a high school senior in Alabama, Donavon Ramsey got used to not having a permanent place to sleep. By Tim Stanley
Tulsa elementary school gymnasium feels more like sanctuary thanks to caring teacher
It is the end of another challenging day at McClure, a Tulsa public elementary school tucked into a neighborhood where residents worry about low income and high crime. By Guerin Emig
Part 5: After losing seven students in a tornado-stricken Moore elementary school, a counselor is helping Oklahoma schools become trauma-informed
After an EF-5 tornado razed a school full of children in 2013 and Kristin Atchley lost seven students, she finally knew what chronic trauma was. Now she’s helping create trauma-informed schools in Oklahoma. By Andrea Eger
One school district is leading the state and nation in approach to serving students grappling with chronic stressors
A rapidly changing student population combined with two high-profile sexual assault cases among students forced school district leaders here to find a new approach to educating kids. By Andrea Eger
Central High School teacher advocated for Aylin Reyes once, now she advocates for children
As a child in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Aylin Reyes had a single mom. She didn’t know her father. Educational opportunities were grim. Adversity was prevalent. By Guerin Emig
Part 6: How a Tulsa real estate agent became Mama Linda to foster children
Linda Vincent lets you know straight away: Being a foster parent can be terrifying. “Ter-ri-fy-ing,” she says for emphasis. By Guerin Emig
Part 7: Central High School football coach calls strenuous work with at-risk students 'the most rewarding experience of my life'
Kip Shaw was once an unwavering college football assistant. Now, he coaches at Central High School, where he estimates 80% of his players have encountered alarming degrees of adversity. By Guerin Emig
Part 8: What the leading voices for change say Oklahoma needs to reduce chronic childhood traumas
Few people have been in a position to bear greater witness to Oklahoma’s extraordinary rates of childhood trauma than Doris Fransein, who recently retired as Tulsa County’s longtime chief judge over juvenile cases. By Andrea Eger
Tulsa World ACEs advisory board
A group of Tulsa’s leading experts on childhood trauma served as advisers to the Tulsa World’s reporting team.
Kristin Atchley, former executive director of counseling at the State Department of Education
Dr. Gerard Clancy, University of Tulsa president, psychiatrist (pictured)
Joe Dorman, former legislator and CEO of the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy
Judge Doris Fransein, retired District Court chief juvenile judge
Deidra Kirtley, Resonance Center for Women executive director
Gail Lapidus, CEO of Family and Children’s Services
Suzann Stewart, Family Safety Center executive director
Julie Summers, director of outreach and prevention at Mental Health Association of Oklahoma
Kristin Atchley uses past trauma to advocate for children dealing with adverse conditions
Michael Overall: Does Oklahoma have a problem too big to solve?
Tulsa World writer and columnist Michael Overall writes about why the newspaper tackled this topic here.
Ginnie Graham: Oklahoma can be a top 10 state if it reduced children experiencing trauma
Last year, Dr. Kim Coon at the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa said something that stuck with me: The ACEs will get you, one way or another. Read Ginnie Graham's column here.
Podcast: Listen to story behind the Tulsa World special report on Adverse Childhood Experiences
The latest episode of Mental Health Association Oklahoma's podcast "The Mental Health Download" tells the story behind the Tulsa World's 8-part series Breaking the Cycle.
The podcast, hosted by Matt Gleason with the Mental Health Association Oklahoma, includes interviews with three people who played key roles in the series.
Lucinda Morte is a mental health professional who has a relatively high ACE score herself.
Donavon Ramsey is a resilient 19-year-old with a high ACE score and plenty of heartbreaking stories.
Ashley Parrish, the Tulsa World’s deputy managing editor who oversaw the year-long process to make the Breaking the Cycle series a reality.
Listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.
"The Mental Health Download" shares stories each month about mental illness, homelessness, incarceration and suicide, and how each can impact our lives in a profound way.
