08/27/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 08/27/2024 10:17
Judges helping guide new SAFE Model
A group of Illinois juvenile court judges attended a meeting, hosted by the Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS), to learn more, ask questions and offer feedback as DCFS continues the phased process of rolling out the new SAFE Model. The purpose of the SAFE model is to identify unsafe children in need of protection, ensure the least intrusive safety management, enhance caregiver protective capacities, and create safe homes and achieve child permanency by restoring caregivers to their protective roles. The group will form a judicial subcommittee to help guide DCFS through the court system implementation phase of the SAFE Model.
Back Row (left to right):
Brian Dougherty, General Counsel, DCFS
Susan Barker, Deputy General Counsel, DCFS
Hon. Mary K. O'Brien, IL Supreme Court
Hon. Ella Travelstead, 1st Judicial Circuit
Hon. Andrea Buford, Circuit Court of Cook County
Hon. David Brown, 10th Judicial Circuit
Hon. Imani Drew, 21st Judicial Circuit
Hon. Jennifer Payne, Circuit Court of Cook County
Judge Kathryn Karayannis, 16th Judicial Circuit
Edward Siemer, Child Welfare Attorney, AOIC
Front Row (left to right):
Hon. Kimbery Lewis, Circuit Court of Cook County
Hon. Chantelle Porter, 18th Judicial Circuit
Hon. Levander Smith, Circuit Court of Cook County
Heather Dorsey, Director- Courts, Children and Families Division