As an organization, we are completing a statewide transition out of residential group care because

research shows, and our experts agree, that the best place for children is in their home. In most cases,
children are referred to us because of neglect, not abuse. Neglect could be as simple as a parent unable
to find adequate housing or a lack of understanding of parenting skills. Those are fixable issues, and
that’s why we are refocusing our efforts on prevention services and behavioral health to intervene
before foster care is necessary. As we do this, the youth at Joshua House will remain our top priority and
focus, and we will do all we can to successfully transition them into the best setting that can meet their
individual needs. We are fully committed to working with our local partners to find the best home for
each youth. We believe most – if not all – of these kids can transition to live with family members, close
family friends or loving foster families.

As an organization, CHS has made an intentional shift in the services we provide, with a focus on
creating and delivering solutions that will end the need for foster care as we know it, and keep more
families safe, strong and together – and prevent more kids from entering foster care. Research
demonstrates that children experience the best outcomes when they can remain safely with their
families, with proper services in place. Decades of research is directing us to refocus our work on
prevention and behavioral health, and we are centering our efforts on preventing entries into foster
care so we can improve lifetime outcomes for children.

It’s important to remember that Children’s Home Society of Florida serves more than 2,500 local
children through these services, including the 19 we serve at Joshua House.

Though CHS is transitioning out of residential care, there are many excellent providers that focus solely
on residential treatment for youth in foster care, allowing youth to receive the care and treatment they
need before moving into a family setting.

It's also important to remember that, two years ago, the federal government also sent the clear
message that the work in child welfare must change. With the passage of the Family First Prevention
Services Act, Congress took a hard look at the child welfare system and substantially changed the way
states serve kids and families in crisis. In addition to significantly changing the funding model to increase
in-home prevention services on the front end, the legislature completely changed the criteria for group
homes serving children in foster care. When this act is fully implemented next year, residential group
homes must meet new criteria to qualify as a “Qualified Residential Treatment Center,” and they will
only be for children who meet specific qualifications and require intensive short-term services before
they can successfully move into a family setting. Once this legislation is fully implemented, Joshua House
will not meet the criteria to qualify as a residential program to serve this population.

Instead of waiting for the government to determine when we make the exit out of residential care, we
have a responsibility to the youth we serve at Joshua House to thoughtfully develop a transition plan –in
collaboration with the youth, their families, other loved ones and mentors, case managers, and partners
in the community – so they can successfully move into the best possible home environment. With this
strategic approach, we can help youth experience the best outcomes.

As a leader in serving children, we have a responsibility to deliver the solutions that are proven to
provide children with the best opportunities to succeed – and that’s what we’ll continue to do.
CHS remains committed to and will continue abiding by the terms of the 2004 agreement with the
Friends of Joshua House.

We have been dedicated to our partnership with the Friends of Joshua House for 30 years, and we will
continue to do all we can to work toward the solution that will best help children. Throughout the
process, we remain committed to and will continue to abide by the 2004 agreement with the Friends of
Joshua House.

We currently have 19 youth at Joshua House, and we have 36 beds. Since November, we have helped to
transition 12 youth to more permanent settings; 67% safely returned to their families, joined the family
of a relative or found forever homes through adoption. We helped one youth prepare for successful
independence, and we helped transition the others to loving foster families.

As we complete our transition out of residential care, the youth at Joshua House will remain our top
priority and focus. , We are fully committed to working with our local partners to find the best home for
each youth. We believe most – if not all – of these kids can transition to live with family members, close
family friends or loving foster families.

In preparation for our transition out of group care, we have been exploring options for the property,
always honoring our 2004 agreement with the Friends of Joshua House. As we operate with only the
highest level of integrity, we have been fully transparent with the Friends of Joshua House regarding
both our exit from residential care as well as our responsibility to explore contingent possibilities, should
that be necessary – and always recognizing the rights of the Friends of Joshua House under the 2004
agreement. One of our contingent possibilities did include a letter of intent with another provider,
recognizing the rights of the Friends of Joshua House under the 2004 agreement.

However, we have made the decision about the future of the property. Consistent with our decision to
exit from residential care, we have chosen to list the Joshua House property for sale, again, subject to
the Friends of Joshua House’s rights under the 2004 agreement. We have made this decision so we can
focus all of our efforts on evidence-based services for children and families in the community, rather
than direct any resources or attention toward a property management and oversight situation.

Our strategic decision to focus our efforts on delivering evidence-based services that can keep more
children safe at home and out of foster care is going to, in fact, build a stronger community and provide
a greater impact on the lives, safety and well-being of local children.

Research consistently demonstrates that children experience better outcomes when they can remain
safe at home, with proper services in place or, if they do enter foster care, with a loving foster family. As
a leader in serving children – we’ve been doing this for 117 years – we have a responsibility to children,
families and the community to align our services and solutions with the evidence. Nearly 75% of children
enter foster care due to fixable family issues, and CHS is working on the front end to address these
issues before they lead to entry into foster care. When we focus our efforts on evidence-based solutions
– such as behavioral health, community partnership schools and prevention programs, all of which we
provide to the Suncoast community – we can make a greater impact on the lives, safety, well-being and
futures of children. It’s important to remember that Children’s Home Society of Florida serves more
than 2,500 local children, including the 19 we serve at Joshua House. Our commitment to this
community is stronger than ever, and we will continue to deliver the evidence-based solutions that are
proven to help more children stay safe at home – and out of foster care.