To the Editor:

It takes a lot of courage to call out a system that is entrusted with helping the most vulnerable in our society. For every one of the thirty cases that Ms. Fantone has been tracking for the past year there are most likely many more happening. It is understandable that the new commissioner Ms. Ackerman and some county legislators would seek to defend DSS staff. But most of these complaints are not about hard work and dedication. It is more about a culture that is present in many bureaucracies. Polls conducted in our country are split almost equally about the reason people need assistance from government welfare agencies. Almost 50% believe that those seeking assistance have not done enough for themselves. When the news media reports the names of people accused of welfare fraud it only causes some people in real need of help to panic and not go for help until it is to late. That is why according to a report by AARP only 18% of eligible households with an elderly member receive food stamps (SNAP) in 2006. Most believe that their income and assets are too high. They do not want to risk what they have spent their whole life working for.

How then can the culture at DSS be changed? One must realize that most people working at DSS cannot imagine the pressure on many of their clients. Even those who buy the idea of half the country that those seeking help have not done enough for themselves, have no clue. If Ms. Ackerman would really like to start to change the culture of the agency, she might want to consider a program that St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES sponsored as part of training for the McKinney-Vento Homeless Program. It took staff members from the eighteen school districts and had them participate in “Poverty Simulation.” During the simulation you will role play a month in poverty and experience low-income families’ lives. In a half-day experience, you get to feel the emotions that your clients feel every day. After the initial simulation BOCES offered it to every school in its consortium. It might not change attitudes for DSS employees, but it would provide them with the experiences most clients deal with every day. Since it requires large groups, it would be ideal for an agency like DSS.

As for the complaints that are piling up, the local DSS is licensed and supervised by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. Given the number of complaints, it would be reasonable for the St. Lawrence County Legislature to ask for a full investigation with recommendations. One concern of a legislator I talked to recently was that the same individuals mentioned in the complaints will be training the new employees. As for the foster care system the county should re-evaluate whether the money being spent on the outside agency “Fostering Futures” is working towards the goals especially with teenagers of either returning home or becoming independent as they move into the future. St. Lawrence County spent close to 5 million dollars between January 2018 and July 2019 for average of 124 children (mostly teens) per month. It comes out to about $2345.00 per child per month. Foster parents get at most around $700 a month. I would think the county could hire its own caseworkers and run a very professional recruiting campaign for foster parents with that kind of money. Just a few observations

Joachim (Joe) Van Ells
Hopkinton