Iowa labor group responds to decision to close Iowa Juvenile Home

DES MOINES – On Monday, the Branstad Administration announced its secretive decision to close the Iowa Juvenile Home and outsource the services the Juvenile Home provides to some of Iowa’s most troubled youth.

“We are shocked to hear the Governor’s office has taken this course of action. Many groups have been working together to solve the issues at the Iowa Juvenile Home. Not only is this a sad day for the workers, but it is a sad day for the Iowa’s troubled youth displaced because of the Governor’s actions,” said AFSCME Iowa Council 61 President Danny Homan.

“The troubled youth at the Juvenile Home deserved a truly open decision making process that sought a dialogue with all Iowans, including legislators. The students at the Juvenile Home deserved an honest and public discussion about how the students will receive assistance in the future. Governor Branstad’s closed door decision making process failed to live up to these principles and the Governor’s pledge for transparency in state government,” added Homan.

Juvenile Home employees have and continue to be willing partners in addressing the failures of management policies at the Juvenile Home.

“Our members and our union will continue to advocate for troubled youth and for the state’s responsibility to see them through their difficult times,” said Homan.

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Earlier in 2013, Gov. Branstad signed executive order immediately implementing higher standards for care and training at the Iowa Juvenile Home:

Gov. Terry E. Branstad today signed Executive Order 82, found here, which immediately holds the Iowa Juvenile Home to higher standards of care. The Iowa Juvenile Home will be held to the same standards for restraint or seclusion as a private comprehensive residential facility.

These increased standards for care will lead to greater safety, transparency and oversight in treatment for children at the Iowa Juvenile Home.

Additionally, Executive Order 82 mandates trauma-informed care training for staff at the Iowa Juvenile Home. The principles outlined in the executive order are as follows:

WHEREAS, protecting the health, safety and welfare of Iowa’s children is of the utmost importance; and

WHEREAS, all Iowa children deserve the best care and education we can provide; and

WHEREAS, the Iowa Juvenile Home is a comprehensive residential facility for children and is entrusted to provide effective interventions for the most troubled youth in the State; and

WHEREAS, the culture at the Iowa Juvenile Home must focus on high quality care and education; and

WHEREAS, treatment for children, including the use of seclusion or restraint, should only be employed in a safe and transparent manner consistent with the highest standards and practices set for similar private sector facilities.

The executive order will also establish a five-member task force to formulate new recommendations for the juvenile home and assist in their implementation. Their responsibilities are as follows:

a. Make recommendations about how to improve services for residents;

b. Review incident data to ensure a high-level of care is delivered at the Iowa Juvenile Home;

c. Recommend a strategy for the permanent elimination of seclusion rooms outside the cottage setting;

d. Recommend a strategy outlining the transition of the Iowa Juvenile Home’s education plan from being managed from the Department of Human Services to Area Education Agency 267; and

e. Reach other goals and objectives as requested by the Office of the Governor.

Task force members appointed by the governor will be as follows:

Prof. Jerry Foxhoven, Executive Director, Drake Legal Clinic

Charles Palmer, Director, Iowa Department of Human Services

Dr. Mary Stevens, Director of Special Education, Area Education Agency 267

Dr. Mark R. Peltan, Chairman, Council on Human Services

Ron Stehl, former Executive Director, Youth Homes of Mid-America

Foxhoven will chair the task force.

The task force report is due October 15th.