February 6, 2019

Dear Stakeholder,

The National Weather Service informs of continued low temperatures and high confidence that snow/slush will refreeze tonight.  Please be alert of changes in road conditions may impact tomorrow’s commute.

The Department of Children, Youth and Families offices will be open for usual hours.  Use caution as roadways, paths and sidewalks may be slippery.

Update (4:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 1): The Vancouver office, located at 907 Harney St., will remain closed through Monday. We anticipate the office will reopen on Tuesday morning.

Due to ongoing construction, the DCYF office in Vancouver, located at 907 Harney St., will remain closed today and is expected to reopen on Monday afternoon.

Effective February 1, 2019, the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) will increase child care subsidy base rates for licensed center providers.

All regions will receive base rate increases for infant, toddler, and preschool age ranges. Region 1 will have an increase for school-age children as well.

One of our agency’s core values is transparency, and there are many ways that we try to live out that value in our work. We think it’s important to share publicly our goals and how we are making progress on them, and to that end, we have launched an agency performance dashboard on our website.

The Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) oversees the state child welfare system.

DCYF selected Public Consulting Group, Inc. (PCG) to complete a series of rate studies over 18 months for the following services: Behavioral Rehabilitation Services (BRS), child placing agencies, foster parent reimbursement rates, and Exception Cost Foster Care (ECP).

Dave Keating will be remembered through the hundreds of children he and his wife fostered over a 30 year period.

For over 30 years Dave and Denise Keating welcomed hundreds of foster children into their home in Enumclaw.

January is National Mentoring Month, and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) is joining MENTOR Washington to promote, support, and expand quality mentoring that fosters positive youth development and academic success.

November is National Adoption Month, and throughout the month, the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) is joining with the Administrative Office of the Courts in commemorating the state’s families who have come together through adoption.

Secretary Hunter submitted a letter to the Office of Financial Management for the Department of Children, Youth, and Families biennial budget.