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Butterworth Changes DCF Culture With His 'Two Sense' Solution

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 1, 2007

Department of Children and Families Secretary Bob Butterworth has one of the toughest jobs in state government, but after just 10 months on the job, he's brought refreshing change to an agency that's been short on transparency and long on excuses.

Butterworth is changing the culture with his 'two sense' solution, which asks employees to bring two things to work every day: common sense and a sense of urgency.

Already, his focus has made a difference at DCF, which has a spotty record in serving children and citizens.

Instead of getting defensive, Butterworth wants his staff to focus on doing the right thing, even if it causes momentary embarrassment when mistakes are made.

Most recently, he's taken a common-sense approach to resolving lawsuits in which the state faces significant liability.

In Palm Beach County, he halted the appeal of a $26 million jury verdict awarded a girl who was nearly beaten to death after social workers returned her to her abusive mother. The agency wanted to delay paying the child, who will be handicapped for life.

In another Palm Beach case, Butterworth agreed to a $10 million settlement with a family kept in the dark about three boys they adopted. The boys had been sexually abused by a foster father and need lifelong treatment. The adoptive parents only found out their secret after the boys began showing violent behavior, tried to molest other children and were suicidal.

And in Gainesville, DCF reached a $14 million settlement with 20 children who were horribly beaten and abused by foster mother Nellie Johnson. Butterworth said the children were instrumental in securing Johnson's conviction and 60-year prison sentence. In good conscience, he said he could not then deny their civil claim that the agency ignored repeated complaints against Johnson.

These cases are extraordinary and expensive, no question. But putting an end to legal foot-dragging when the state is liable can prevent large jury verdicts and massive attorneys' fees.

Besides, it's the right thing to do.

At the same time, Butterworth is focusing the agency's legal department on cases that most merit their time. That does not include, he said, a lengthy lawsuit aimed at collecting a few thousand dollars from a man, now 29, whose mother illegally got him food stamps when he was 16.

When it comes to a sense of urgency, Butterworth makes clear his expectations for employees and private caseworkers at the agencies that contract to serve abused and neglected children. He chastised the Sarasota County YMCA for mishandling the case of Courtney Clark, a Pinellas County toddler abducted from a foster home by her mother. The child was found in Wisconsin in a torture chamber of a home. The Sarasota YMCA now is on notice to get its act together or risk losing a $72 million contract to provide foster care in five counties.

Butterworth's message is clear: Agencies must act like their responsibilities are a matter of life and death - because they are.

A former state attorney general, Butterworth is proving that clear and concise leadership doesn't need to be complicated, even in troublesome circumstances.

Now, if he could just get the rest of government to see its mission so clearly.

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