Earlier this summer, the Department of Children and Youth (DCY) awarded the Foundation a contract to lead a new collaboration to improve Ohio’s child welfare system by enhancing the quality and quantity of attorneys practicing child welfare law in Ohio.
The project calls for collaboration with multiple partners, including the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA), Ohio CASA, the Public Children Services Association of Ohio (PCSAO), and Kinnect to create systemic change. Informed by consultants, Baldacci Consulting and Illuminology, the new project will help Ohio maximize its Title IV-E drawdowns and streamline reimbursements, support innovative new models for service delivery, provide specialized training to attorneys in the child welfare space, and develop incentives to recruit and retain additional attorneys for child welfare work.
To support the project, the Foundation has hired two new team members—Patricia Vargas Vegas and Bernice Laryea—to join Robby Southers, the Foundation’s policy and justice initiatives counsel.
Vargas Vegas joins the team as a child welfare attorney and will manage the project and coordinate collaboration among the various partners. A graduate of Vanderbilt University Law School, Vargas Vegas most recently was an associate at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. Her background includes serving as pro bono coordinator and managing attorney of the pro bono team for Legal Aid of Southeast and Central Ohio (formerly Southeastern Ohio Legal Services), and expertise in immigration and family law.
Bernice Laryea has been hired as a financial coordinator. Laryea holds a master’s degree in economics and management from Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic, and a master’s degree in business and data analytics from Franklin University. She will provide administrative support and manage the project’s financial aspects.
“With the addition of Patricia and Bernice, our team is now fully in place to lead this collaboration,” said Angie Lloyd, the Foundation’s executive director. “We look forward to working with our partners to create better outcomes for Ohio’s children, and ultimately, to reduce the number of children in the foster care system.”
The Ohio Access to Justice Foundation helps ensure that Ohioans who are low-income or who lack access can fully and fairly participate in civil systems that produce just outcomes. Learn more at ohiojusticefoundation.org.