Charting a Brighter Future for Arkansas Families

Karen Phillips:
I recently had the opportunity to visit with our State Director of Child Welfare, Tiffany Wright, to talk about the future of foster care in Arkansas. While there's always more work to do, it’s clear that we are seeing real progress in strengthening our child welfare system.

Some of the most encouraging indicators include:

• A decrease in the number of children in foster care

• An increase in kinship placements

• Fewer children waiting for adoption

• Improvements in workforce retention

• And a significantly lower rate of reoccurrence of maltreatment after case closure compared to other states

These are powerful markers of an improving system. What would you say is driving this progress?

Director Tiffany Wright:
These outcomes are the result of years of intentional effort. We’ve focused on strengthening how the child welfare system responds to the most vulnerable children and families in Arkansas. It’s been about investing in communities and supporting local partnerships. Arkansas has been afforded several ways to impact that response including programs like WIC Baby and Me, Intensive In-Home supports, SafeCare, and Triple P - Parenting for Prevention. We also have focused on permanency, safely and swiftly moving children and youth through the foster care system through reunification, subsidized guardianship, and adoption. 

Karen:
As someone who has family members currently in kinship care, I see the impact firsthand. One of the children recently spent the night with us, and as we watched the sunrise together, I showed him baby pictures—including moments with his parents. That kind of continuity, that sense of belonging, is something only kin can provide. Kinship placements don’t just keep kids safe—they keep them connected.

What are your long-term goals for kinship placement in Arkansas?

Director Wright:
Safe, appropriate kinship placements are always our top priority because the outcomes are consistently better. Children experience more stability, a lower risk of maltreatment, and more timely reunification with their parents.

We’ve just raised our formal goal from 40% to 50% for kinship placements, which is a big step—but it’s just the beginning. Personally, I’d love to see us reach 70% or higher. We have to keep pushing forward because we know it’s what’s best for kids. Outside of increasing the goal there is greater work. For example, it’s about case mining for long stayers in the foster care system and looking back at relatives and parents. It’s about working through system barriers to strengthen processes for family finding, shortening the time for adoption. It’s a lot of different moving pieces, but we can do it with the support of our partners who are walking alongside us. 

Karen:
Another critical factor is workforce stability. Without consistent caseworkers who understand a family's history and can move cases forward, kids end up stuck in the system. I’ve been really encouraged by the strides you’re making in this area. What changes have led to these improvements?

Director Wright:
We’re seeing real progress in reducing staff turnover. In state fiscal year 2025 (thus far), the turnover rate among Family Service Workers (FSWs) is down to 46.24%, compared to 55.5% in 2024. For Program Assistants, it's dropped to 48.79%, down from 62.21%.

We’ve worked hard to support staff through better pay and career development. Some of our strategies include:

• Overtime pay without a required comp time bank

• Differential pay for on-call standby duty

• A 7% raise for FSWs after completing New Staff Training

• A clear career ladder for advancement

• Increased starting pay for Program Assistants

• Pay raises tied to years of service

We also now allow experienced Program Assistants to move into FSW roles if they’ve demonstrated the skills and dedication. And we’re excited about our new pay plan on the horizon—thanks to Governor Sanders and our legislators. It’s a game-changer. We're also exploring new staff training for  FSWs and supervisors which includes caring about their well-being. We are also continuing to show the workforce that they are valued and supported. We have held a DCFS employee appreciation banquet for three years in a row and continue to show that Every Day Counts for children and families. 

Karen:
We both recently spent time with the University of Notre Dame’s Lab for Economic Opportunities, which is conducting a national evaluation of Arkansas’s work. Why do you think they’re so interested in what’s happening here, and how might this benefit families?

Director Wright:
Arkansas is doing something unique. We’re collaborative, we’re community-minded, and we’re focused on doing what’s right for families. When you look at the partnerships between DCFS, Restore Hope, and community coalitions across the state, you see real collective impact and I believe Notre Dame sees that too. This evaluation will help us measure what’s working, highlight our strengths, and uncover ways we can improve. It’s going to give us the data we need to scale and strengthen what we’re doing. 

Karen:
So, what’s next? What should Arkansans know about how they can get involved and make a difference?

Director Wright:

There are so many ways to help. First, visit everychildarkansas.org to learn about becoming a foster parent—it’s one of the most direct ways to make an impact.

You can also connect with a local 100 Families network in your county and support families before foster care is ever needed. Additionally, the Arkansas Family Alliance is expanding CarePortal into more counties, which allows communities to respond directly to the tangible needs of families in crisis. We would encourage churches to sign up to be part of the solution by responding to needs in CarePortal. We'd love to see these solutions be available in every county in Arkansas: The 100 Families Initiative providing prevention opportunities for struggling families, CarePortal allowing the churches to step in and provide basic needs for these same families, and integration of all other prevention and reunification services so that activities are aligned in Arkansas, making a greater impact than ever.  

Everyone has something to offer—time, resources, mentorship, or simply a listening ear. When we come together, we create a system that doesn’t just react to crisis but prevents it.

Karen:
Thank you, Director Wright, for your leadership and for your heart for Arkansas families. We’re excited about what’s ahead and grateful for the collaboration that’s making real change possible. I believe that Arkansas has the potential to be the first state to integrate statewide several national solutions and those solutions will bring about outcomes for families and children that impact generations to come.