The State's chronically broken foster care system may be fixed by a program called 'Family Tapestry, which was introduced today by the Children's Shelter, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Supported by prominent local philanthropists like Narvey Najim and the Kronskosky Charitable Foundation, Family Tapestry aims to 'take foster care local,' according to veteran Family Court Judge John Specia, who is a former Commissioner of Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
He says unlike most states, Texas has a centrally based, statewide foster care system, and the result is that children are removed from their home communities and schools when they are placed into foster care.
He says local control has several advantages.
"Community based care gives us the opportunity to change rapidly, to figure out what we need," he said.
The goal is to address the specific need of each and every child and youth who enters foster care.
Specia says that means a lot more stability in the system.
"One of the critical pieces of this, is that once Family Tapestry receives a child, that child cannot be ejected."
Specia says one of the problems with the current system is that kids are frequently shuttled between one provider and another, and some providers, for example, don't accept certain types of kids, or certain ages.
On any given day, 2,000 Bexar County children and young people are in foster care.