Herald & Lantern 18 May '83

23

Thornton: Child Care Study ‘Misleading’

By E. J. DUFFY CAPE MAY - County Freeholder Gerald M. Thornton dismissed as "misleading" a League of Women Voters’ "Child Watch" report, which outlines the effect social service funding cuts are having on county children, during the May meeting of the county Human Services Advisory Council. Council member George Plewa, however, called the summary "a bad report card" for county social service agencies. The report, prepared by the league's Ocean City chapter is now part of a state study compiled by the Association for Children of New Jersey. Advisory Council member Diane Bechtold, who also serves as county "Child Watch" coordinator and a league member, was scheduled to review the report at the council meeting but was called away to a conference in Norfolk, Va In her absence, the report 'which includes more volatile findings of in creases in child abuse, neglect and incest etc ) was briefly debated by the council, but only in respect to the lack of day care facilities in the county "I think that was because the freeholder brought that up," M Ann Magee, coun cil chairwoman, said of the limited discussion about the report "If somebody had brought something else up. we would have discuss ed it.” In its introduction, the "Child Watch" report relates an account of a woman who "had to stop working to stay at home with her two small children because affordable child care in her area is nonexistent " According to the account, the woman "is involved in church and civic

activities and, because of these outside interests, is being accused of welfare fraud." Reached at the Norfolk conference, Bechtold said that the account had to be related to a league interviewer, during the league's Child Watch investigation, by a county social service agent. Thornton, however, questioned the authehticity of the data in the report. He characterized the introductory account as "absolute garbage." In the report, the league investigators found that "day care facilities of all kinds are lacking in the county. Although (an) assessment, conducted by the Cape Human Resources three years ago. showed a need for organiz ed child care, there was no response by the county. According to one freeholder, a conscious decision was made by the county not to fund day care." Nevertheless, Thornton told the Advisory Council that he is still waiting for a "needs assessment" of county day care Until one is prepared, he said, county officials will have no ac curate idea if a need actually exists or, if it does, where. Five years ago, he add ed. indications were that ''the costs were astronomical" to imple ment an organized daycare program Ralph I Schellinger. director of the county Welfare Department, agreed with Thornton's recollection of his observation at that time - that it is cheaper to main tain a woman on Welfare than to pay for care of her children while she works "I don't understand the logic for not providing day care services for children because it's cheaper to keep them home," com plained council member

George Plewa. "I didn't say it was logical," Schellinger replied. "I was just making a statement (of fact) " Plewa argued that the "mission" of social service agencies has been to get people back to work Thornton agreed that the fact that it may be cheaper to maintain recipients on public assistance than to provide day care so Jhcy can work "didn’t make scase." but, he maintained, neither does funding day care with no return on the investment Schellinger noted that, after New York City spent billions to provide daycare. its Welfae rolls remained unchanged "That's not the only reason for day care," said Plewa. referring' to its possible affect on unemployment and public assistance He called the issue ' ‘ a Catch22 situation." "Let's get the base data first, then look for fun ding," Thornton suggested, again pressing for a needs assessment of day care “How about some follow up on this?" asked council member Barry Keefe The council voted to investigate county day care needs by, establishing a committee to study them Thornton asked the com mittee to complete its work within 90 days The work would be sheer duplication, according to Bernice Gordon, director of Cape Human Resources and a council member, who was also absent from the meeting Despite Thornton's contentions to the contrary, a thorough "needs assess ment" of organize^ county day care had bet$i completed and submitteH to the freeholders in 1979, Gordon insisted "Oh. heavens, I have the files here in my office." she exclaimed after hearing about Thornton's remarks We did definitely do a needs assessment because 1 still have the files " The Cape Resource staff, she said, conducted the assessment between June 6, 1977 and May 5, 1978 The staff determined a need for day care centers in Wildwood, the Cape MayLower Township vicinity. Ocean City and Woodbine. Gordon noted. Each center would have cost $62,454 to operate and would have cared for 20 children a day. she explained "That was our initial pro posal that we went before the freeholders with." Gor don added "That was in 1979, right alter the study was done " Three churches in Ixjwer Township and another in Wildwood had offered to donate space for the centers, she recalled, and one center did open in Ocean City only to close because of a lack of funding. It now houses a "Head Start" program As drafted, the $312,260 organized day care pro posal liad called for 75 per cent federal funding and a 25 percent county share, plus a three-percent Ipcal tab toward administration cpsts Federal money evaporated, however, and the county declined to pick up the full program costs. Gordon said A social service agent, who asked to remain

anonymous, said that, when the day care proposal had been unveiled to the freeholders, some of them "thought women should stay home and take care of their children "We ga^e all the opposition, why,"-’the agent added "We Were pushing for all our working parents Meanwhile. Gordon faulted Thornton's criticism of the league "Child Watch” informa lion She said the league in vestigators did, indeed, in lerview social service representatives and wouldn't have fudged the findings "When they go check ing," Gordon said of the league members, "they do a pretty good job " Beyond fhe questions about needs assessment and investigation. Bechtold laughed sadly at Thornton’s criticism of the "Child Watch" report After she had sent him a copy of the report, Bechtold said. Thornton wrote a reply. She paraphrased his response

job well done How do you find time to do these projects’’" Asked why the AdvisoryCouncil did not address the other findings in the report, Magee replied, "I think we ^ere unclear as to what Diane Bechtold wanted us to do with it." The report, she said, was more or less unofficially tabled until Bechtold offers recommendations about it at the next council meeting Noting that many of the council members are also social service agency representatives, who deal with findings similar to those in the "Child Watch" report every day, Bechtold asked: "Why don't those people speak up and say. ■We're trying to do something about these things but we need the council to get behind us The council members, she said with a chuckle, needn't remain silent when "Jerry Thornton gets a bee up his bottom " After she attends a May 21 conference On day care at Glassboro State College,

Bechtold said she will have a better idea of what 'N^ecommendations she plans to make to the coun cil at its June meeting But its social agency members have better resources to do that job than those available to tier, she Complained Bechtold views her role on the Advisory Council as •'"a door opener" for other members who are better equipped lo implement pro posals into programs "I don't have all the magical answers." she

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* * LOWER TOWNSHIP REPUBLICAN ELECTION * * ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ THE PEOPLE OF LOWER TOWNSHIP SHOULD KNOW!!! SAMUEL STUBBS, recently given a county

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JAMES MAC DONALD, Stubbs Campaign Manager - given thousands $$$ in county contracts. JACK MORAN, Stubb's Campaign Treas. - county employee, so are others in his family. Mr. Moran, is the Job of Director of Veterans Bureau yours after the election?? JOE DAVIS NO POLITICAL JOBS!!! "I am retired, like my opponent, but I don't believe in wasting taxpayer's dollars on "Plum'' county jobs!!! A CANDIDATE FOR THE COUNTY?? or A CANDIDATE TO REPRESENT LOWER TOWNSHIP!!! THE DIFFERENCE IS CLEAR!!! YOU MAKE THE DIFFERENCE!!! VOTE FOR A MAN WITH INTEGRITY!!! VOTE FOR A MAN WITH HONOR!!! ★ ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ VOTE JOE DAVIS

FOR

LOWER TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE JUNE, 7th. I OH l [>-i tor b

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