OCFS Agency Newsletter

Dear OCFS Colleagues,

As you may know, Thursday, April 4 is my last day at OCFS and with all of you. As I stated in my March 6 letter to all agency staff, serving at OCFS for almost a decade – as Acting Commissioner, Executive Deputy Commissioner and General Counsel – has truly been the most fulfilling and humbling experience of my career.

I am so grateful to have had all of you by my side as we achieved so much together. While leaving OCFS is bittersweet for me, I am thrilled with how much we have been able to accomplish together these past few years for the children, families and communities we serve. We have led a child welfare systems transformation through ground-breaking economic and concrete support-based prevention work that proactively addresses inequities. And we have worked to tackle barriers to affordable and equitable child care. Our most significant efforts include:

• Creating the OCFS HEARS (Help, Empower, Advocate, Reassure and Support) Line to support and provide services to families to reduce the number of families entering child welfare through a CPS report.
• Creating and implementing a new mandated reporter training that includes an implicit bias component and addresses the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
• Launching the Direct Cash Transfer Research Pilot, which is serving 150 families at risk of poverty-related neglect in three New York counties.
• Addressing critical issues regarding child care availability and workforce retention through the Child Care Availability Task Force.
• Creating and launching the Policy Author’s Guide. This first-of-its-kind resource guides policy authors and reviewers through the thoughtful development of policy with diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility as its central tenets.

There is still much more to be done to uplift our communities and promote equitable outcomes, but I know I leave behind an executive staff and agency-wide workforce that is fully committed and dedicated to this work. Your passion will see this through.

Thank you again for your support over these past 10 years.

With deep gratitude,

Suzanne Miles-Gustave, Esq.
Acting Commissioner & Executive Deputy Commissioner