HomeMy WebLinkAboutFamily Services Advisory Committee - Minutes - 1/9/2018
BAYFIELD COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
FAMILY SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
Courthouse Conference Room A
Tuesday, January 9th, 2018 at 4:30 pm
Committee Members Present: John Blahnik, Dale Johnson, Jeremy Oswald, Bev Patterson
and Susan Davis (joined the meeting at 4:37pm).
Committee Members Excused: Lona Schmidt and Bev Lindell
Others Present: Larry Fickbohm (Bayfield County Board), Cheryl Hanson (Family Services
Section Manager), Elizabeth Skulan (Bayfield County Department of Human Services Director)
and Nina Bucher (Support Staff).
Call to order and introductions: Due to Lona’s absence (Committee Chairman), Jeremy
Oswald acted as Chair for the meeting. Jeremy called the meeting to order at 4:30pm and
introductions were made around the room.
Public Comment Opportunity: No public comment.
Presentation-“What is the Family Services Advisory Committee and what do we
do?”: After handing out a list of roles, responsibilities and expectations of advisory committee
members, Cheryl explained that the Family Services Advisory Committee (FSAC) is specific to
the Family Services section and may make recommendations to the Human Services Board
regarding Family Service issues. FSAC members are the eyes and ears in the community to
identify/relay unmet needs/issues back to Family Services. They are also responsible to
promote and inform citizens of what Family Services does and the programs they offer in the
community. Advisory committee members apply and are then appointed by the Human
Services Board.
Family Services staffing update: Three positions are currently open in Family Services:
Social Work Aide, Social Work Intern, and Family Specialist. The Family Specialist vacancy is
the most crucial to fill, but interviewed applicants have not been a match to date. The Family
Specialists goes into homes and works with families to help create a safe, healthy environment
for children to flourish in. This may include teaching parenting skills, developing routines for
hygiene/cleanliness, nutrition, learning, and anything else that will help families become
functional. Cheryl said they will continue to advertise and interview for these three vacancies
and details may be found on the County website. Although turnover is naturally high in the
social work field, Cheryl’s goal is to keep Family Services fully staffed with competent engaged
employees.
Minute Approval: John made a motion, seconded by Bev P. to approve minutes from
the 9/19/17 FSAC meetings as written. Motion passed unanimously.
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Red Cliff Indian Child Welfare (RCICW) update: Red Cliff received a grant for child
welfare staffing and they now have six people employed: Gretchen Morris (Director), an office
manager, a case aide, and three staff members in the field. This increase in staff has cut down
on their calls to Family Services for help on cases, yet Family Services and RCICW still have
monthly meetings to discuss common cases/issues. Cheryl said the relationship remains
positive, professional, and beneficial to both Departments.
Program updates: Cheryl reported a total of 54 adult and 6 youth Emergency Detentions
(EDs) in 2017 and there have been four so far in 2018. Hopefully the trend of more individuals
carrying/qualifying for health insurance to pay for hospitalization will continue.
Two movies featuring Family Services issues will be shown in the community. Northlakes
Community Clinic presents “Resilience”, a documentary on adverse child experiences that will
be shown in Iron River and Washburn. Post movie discussion will take place. The Bayfield
County Health Department has purchased “Written Off”, a documentary about opiate
addiction. Family Services is working with the Health Department to promote and show this
film throughout the County.
Informational Items: Cheryl shared that the Foster Parent Dinner held in Port Wing at the
Bear Paw Café in December was tremendous! Everyone had a good time with a nice meal and
presents for the children.
Future Meetings: Quarterly FSAC meeting dates will continue to be held at 4:30pm on the
second Tuesday of the month in January, April, July, and October. Future 2018 meeting dates
are 4/10/18, 7/10/18, and 10/9/18.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 5:15 pm.
Minutes respectfully submitted by,
Nina Bucher
Nina Bucher
