The first five years with NECCO Louisville was amazing. Staff were well trained and experienced in the field, holding great relationships with state workers and foster parents for the greater good of everyone. We worked together as a team! Turnover was very low and those who were employed by NECCO Louisville truly carried out the agencies mission, “We Build Families!” There was never a time that I didn’t feel supported, and the feedback was meaningful.
Then to the last four years, the constant turnover of staff, staff were not receiving the needed training and has lacked the experience and at times there has been either no direct oversight as everyone had left the agency or oversight was from afar. I can recall many situations over the past four years but there are a few that really hit the point home.
At about year 6-7, when attending in person trainings, I started realizing that the group was getting smaller and the other Foster Parents that I had gotten to know, who many had been with the agency for years became slimmer on a monthly basis. Within six months, all the faces with the exception of a few couples were new. When i started reaching out, the other parents had been experiencing the things I had and transferred out, which was a huge red flag but i remained royal, even though I wanted to leave.
Then the agency promoted a Home Resource Coordinator one day, sending her out to fill the role of a Case Manager, who showed up at my home, inappropriately dressed, overcompensating which led me to ask questions. This individual told me her whole life story to include that she was removed from her mother’s care and was still working through the damage and on and on. Changing the subject, I asked her about her experience and what Case Management Training she had received. As I already knew, most of the Louisville staff had abandoned ship, they had no one else to send out. After the visit, I contacted another Program Director, over another location, who was a part of the amazing NECCO that I started with. He confirmed everything I had already knew and asked me to be patient that they were working to t things turned around. With his support I stayed ……….. within six months, he also left his position.
Even with many things between, about a year later, we received a placement, from another NECCO Louisville home that was moving out of the state; within three days, the state worker was at the door to pick them up. No communication from NECCO Louisville at all. After hearing the worker out, it was out of his hands, NECCO had hit an all-time low with the state, and two levels up in the cabinet, they wanted the kids out of NECCO’s care. I will never forget that day, as I begged and pleaded with this worker, to give it a chance. After about 45 minutes and conversations with the supervisors, they approved for them to stay. That placement lasted for a bit until we had absolutely no assistance with childcare and we both had to go back to work or risk losing our jobs as we were both considered essential.
Lastly, within the past twelve months, the agency has hit an all-time low, again, Home Resource Coordinators, Several Case Managers, Case Management Supervisor, Therapist…….. gone!
The Program Director position was posted several times, for several months and that’s when friends of those employed were hired in, where one reports to the other. The past twelve months with this agency was a complete wreck and even though we were recruited and already in the process of transferring to the state…… after meeting the the new Program Director, we were told that things would get better and what did we do…… we stayed.
During the last 10-month placement, I was communicating more with the state worker, than anyone. The NECCO Case Manager would ask during her visits if we had talked to the state worker as she hasn’t heard from her. This Same Case Manager came in many times, complaint of the lack of support, no leadership, bragging on the number of homes she had already closed and even went as far as telling me that the New Program Director, was good friends with the acting Program Director, who was promoted to State Director of Kentucky; that the current Program Director reports to her friend l, which she was uncomfortable with. I was told when people were leaving before their last day and that’s all we heard was praise. Not one time during our last placement, was any suggestions, recommendations or tools given to use to handle the situation at hand. Then the oldest made an allegation, followed by another the following week. Through all the documentation at home as well as school reports and two of the kids breaking down and sharing that they want the oldest to leave them alone, that he would whispering their ears and tell them to act out, not to listen to adults or they wouldn’t see their mom again. All these things were previously reported to include one teacher sending an email stating that the one in school broke down after attacking her, telling her that he had to listen to his dad followed by the oldest kids name. When the investigative worker looked into all of these things, including the behaviors at school, and the videos of the dates given for what was reported that disproved it, her recommendation, which I have in text, was that the oldest needed to be placed on a home with no other kids until we got further along in therapy. This led to a meeting with a mediator, mind you that works for DCBS, who was blown away and stated that the worker was out of line and should have never of made that recommendation. We thought things were fine after that meeting and then there was another meeting with the school psychologist (Anti-LGBTQ+), who I had only talked to once since August 2021, who addressed concerns in the second meeting that I wasn’t in. Even though we were not in the second meeting, as we couldn’t get out of work for the school’s lack of commitment to attend the first meeting; the decision was made to remove the kids, based on the words from the psychologist, who reportedly stated that our home wasn’t an appropriate placement long term (two men). The Case Manager with NECCO who was in the meeting, who knew the state put in a two-week notice, lied repeatedly to our face, stating oh the meeting went fine, nothing was really brought up! I was on a doctor’s appointment with the youngest when I got the call. Even though this agency was aware for the past thirteen days, there was no time to prepare, no time for closure or goodbyes.
In sharing this, in the nine years with NECCO Louisville, the only advice I can give today, be aware of those within working against the agencies mission in efforts to build back a relationship.
Many lives touched and changed, several grown and a part of our life forever. It’s a shame that it came to this, but we personally chose to close our home as the agency failed to speak up on what was right and DCBS failed to follow the documented recommendations from the investigator, and We refuse to have our heartstrings torn out at the word of one person.
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