THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, October 17, 1995 TAG: 9510170276
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
Pasquotank Social Services handled all of its referrals from the school system correctly in 1994-95, the department's director said Monday.
The department confirmed as actual abuse or neglect only two cases out of 36 reported by educators over the school year. But the reports were properly followed up, Pasquotank County Social Services Director Gwyn Coleman said.
Only two cases were ``substantiated'' because only two met the strict definitions of abuse or neglect set forth by North Carolina law, she said.
Coleman, Pasquotank County Attorney Ike McRee and a North Carolina social services official from Greenville spent a day reviewing the cases after the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank School Board questioned the low substantiation rate last month.
The information was reviewed ``case by case, page by page, report by report'' over nine hours, Coleman said. ``I felt very good that none of the cases had been handled inappropriately by this agency.''
Representatives from the schools and Social Services met Friday to discuss the reports and smooth over misunderstandings between the agencies. Officials from both agencies said they felt positive about the meeting's outcome.
``I think we made some tremendous gains,'' Coleman said. ``We began to know that we both are truly committed to helping children. We now have a foundation for misunderstanding and disagreements to be resolved.''
Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Superintendent Joe Peel said school officials left satisfied that Social Services had done its job.
Coleman said department officials explained to educators the laws governing abuse and neglect. Many cases that appear on the surface to be abuse do not satisfy legal requirements, she said.
``The pattern that we saw was a pattern of parent-child conflict, a pattern of social problems that were spilling over into the school environment,'' Coleman said.
Those problems - such as instances of bruises, poverty-stricken homes or truant adolescents - prompted referrals to Social Services. School district numbers said 13 referrals were screened out without an investigation, and 19 were investigated but ruled unsubstantiated.
McRee, attorney to both Pasquotank County and the Social Services Department, said some of the cases were not formal reports but merely requests for advice. Department officials even checked into some cases that could have been immediately dropped, he said.
``There needs to be greater understanding in our community as a whole what are child abuse and neglect under the law,''saidMcRee, who agreed that every case was handled properly. ``If there's no legal basis, then there's nothing Social Services or government can do.''
Donna Jacobs, children's program representative for the North Carolina Division of Social Services office in Greenville, agreed with McRee's assessment. Jacobs helped review the cases and was at Friday's meeting.
``I think what they see is families in trouble,'' Jacobs said. ``But that doesn't mean the solution to those problems is Child Protective Services. . .
Officials for both agencies also said that school officials were correct to report each case.
``By law, if it's suspected, we have to report it,'' Peel said. ``I think it was suspected in every case.
``The issue is once that is referred, you need to get feedback as to its resolution . . . so there's a better understanding as to why what happened, happened.''
To improve communication between the agencies, officials agreed Friday to meet twice a year to share information and hammer out a system for keeping in touch with each other.
The two departments are moving closer together, Coleman said, at a time when human resources agencies are doing more work with less help.
``These are difficult times,'' Coleman said. ``We're all facing more problems, and those problems are continuing to increase, both in number and intensity.
``Both the schools and Social Services are under public scrutiny. . . . We have to work in unison. We have to become a team.'' by CNB